Black and White
by Space Oranges
Summary: [AU] The Angels that inhabit Cloud Alice live with the constant threat of Death's shadows over powering them and dragging them into the darkness. Mikan is the first in 500 years to be born without wings.
1. Free

**BLACK AND WHITE**

 **Chapter One: Free**

The urge to interrupt her grandfather before he finished was overwhelming. Mikan was bouncing up and down as her grandfather spoke to her.

"Remember," he said slowly. "Any sign of trouble, you must come home immediately."

"Grandpa. I know," she pleaded, "Please can I go now?"

"Stop bouncing, child. Do you have everything?"

Mikan looked down to her sack. "Money, check."

"Yes, but what about something to protect yourself with?"

"Graaaaaaandpa," she drawled, "I'll be fine. There hasn't been an attack in months. Here I'll show you how confident I am."

Mikan inwardly smiled. She knew this would work on her Grandpa. She walked over to where he was sitting in the kitchen and waited for him to materialize his wings. She placed one hand on his feathers and smiled as her Grandpa felt what she felt.

"Not an ounce of doubt," he stated simply. "Alright, my Mikan. You can go."

Mikan practically jumped out the door. Her Grandpa was always a sucker whenever Mikan expressed her feelings onto him. When angels touch the wings of another angel their feelings are projected onto the receiver. This ritual is hardly ever performed though as it is said to be very intimate and only ever done when angels wholeheartedly trust one another, after all wings are a sacred thing to angels. Even Mikan's friends wouldn't let her touch their wings. Her Grandpa most likely just indulged her.

Mikan was a little different. She had no wings. She was the first angel born in the last 500 years without wings. Her Grandpa had scoured over the vast collection of books in their temple looking for answers but found nothing. There were no records of angels born without wings just a butchered story of one 500 years ago that was born with broken wings. That angel perished two weeks after its birth so there was no useful information.

Mikan didn't feel special like her Grandpa constantly told her. She felt different. She was missing out on so much of the world without wings. When she was little she was always the center of attention, constantly being pointed at, the sole reason for the whispers. But that was her life. That was how she was born, wingless, and shortly after parentless.

Mikan reached the doors of the temple and took a deep breath. She hadn't been out of the temple in almost four months. It was mid-summer now and she could not contain her excitement. She pushed the doors open and stepped outside.

The warm summer air engulfed her and a slight breeze rustled her long blonde hair. The inhabitants of Cloud Alice were bustling about. Some angels were flying in the sky and others walked to their destinations. Mikan took in everything. It had been so long since she'd been outside the temple walls.

Her Grandpa had insisted for months for her to stay inside where it was safe. Cloud Alice had been under attack from some sort of shadow creatures. The ground would split open and shadow creatures would come out and angels would mysteriously disappear. No one knew what the shadows wanted or why they were there. They would just appear. Sometimes day after day, but this was the longest that they had remained dormant. The longest time since someone disappeared. It's probably why her Grandpa finally cracked and let Mikan fetch some strawberries from the market.

Mikan followed the tree laden path to the market, she was pretty sure she was one of the only angels that ever used it, after all flying was always faster and more direct. She let her eyes wander, not wanting to miss anything. She gawked at the angels that flew high above and silently prayed to be like them someday. She admired all the shades of white their wings were and tried to imagine herself with wings, flying alongside them.

Noise started to pick up and she could tell she was reaching the market. She made her way into the bustling marketplace and fit right in with the other angels walking about on the ground. She took in the various scents of food around her. Bread, flowers, meats, onions, sweet sweet smells, and strawberries.

She smiled as she made her way to the fruit booth, she finally felt free.


	2. The Black Angel

**Chapter Two: The Black Angel**

After a successful, uneventful trip to the marketplace Mikan felt like taking the long way home. She wasn't sure when her grandpa would let her out again, so she wanted to make the most of it. She was walking through the courtyard when she heard an unsettling noise. It came from nowhere, it was loud and caught her attention immediately. The scream echoed throughout the courtyard, and penetrated every ounce of skin on Mikan's body. She ran in the direction of the scream, fearing the worst. Shadows.

"PLEASE STOP!" she heard as she got closer to the noise.

She rounded a corner looking for the shadows but faltered when she saw four angels cornering another on the ground. What was going on? The angel on the ground was cowering in a ball, he looked battered and beaten.

She shoved her way through the group of angels and helped the cowering angel up. "Are you all right?" she asked.

The angel blinked up at her, "Ye-yes," he stammered.

"What's your name?" Mikan asked.

"Yuu."

"Well Yuu, I'm Mikan, nice to meet you." She smiled down at him.

The other angels faltered slightly at the sudden intrusion. Annoyance flickered across their faces.

"What are you doing?" an angel with black curly hair demanded.

"What am I doing?" Mikan repeated her question. "What are you doing? Picking on an innocent guy!"

"Innocent?" The angel laughed.

"Sumire! Enough of this," the angel to her right cut in. "Let's get rid of this pest."

"Gladly Mochu," she smirked.

Sumire materialized her wings and got ready to take flight. "Let's take this fight to the skies!" she shouted.

The other three angels followed suit and materialized their wings as Mikan could only stare back at them. What could she do? She didn't have wings! She was useless here, how could she ever help out Yuu if she couldn't even be on the same playing field as the others.

"What's the matter?" Mochu sneered, "Scared suddenly?"

Mikan abruptly stood from her position. "I'm not scared of a bunch of bullies!"

"Mikan," Yuu said. "It's okay. I can take care of myself. You should go."

"I'm not leaving you here with them," she shot back at him.

If only she could reason with them. Convince them somehow of their wrongful actions. Angels were creatures of light and protection, not bullies. She knew some angels strayed from the path of light but she knew deep down that they could be brought back and shown the true light.

Mikan opened her mouth to shout to the angels in the sky but she was knocked down by Sumire diving suddenly for her.

"I said let's take this to thy sky, you annoying brat." Sumire had grabbed Mikan and flew her straight up to be level with the others.

Mikan's heart accelerated as her situation dawned on her. She looked down. They were at least 300 feet up in the air. If she fell or if Sumire let go of her she would most likely fall to her death. She started to panic.

"Stop!" Mikan shouted. "There's no reason why we can't settle this on the ground."

"The ground?" Another one of the angels asked, incredulously. "Are you afraid of flying or something?"

Or something. She could feel Sumire's grip on her loosen and she instinctively tightened her grip.

"Ew!" Sumire exclaimed. "What are you doing? Let go of me. You know Koko. I think you're right. She must be scared."

"Show your wings you stupid little girl!" Mochu yelled.

Mikan glanced down at the ground again. "You don't understand," her voice faltered now. "I-I can't fly."

"What?" Sumire shouted. "What kind of angel can't fly? Did you hear that Ruka? Is this some sort of joke?"

The last angel in their group finally participated. He simply shook his head at Mikan.

Mochu cut in. "I'm getting tired of this! She's obviously lying just drop her and let's finish this later." He flew toward Sumire and forcefully took Mikan from her arms.

"No. No. No. No. No!" Mikan cried.

"Come on show us those wings." Mochu grinned down at her.

"Wait—"

"Three!" Mochu started counting.

Mikan's heart hammered in her chest. "I don't—"

"Two." His grip loosened.

"I DON'T HAVE WINGS!"

"One!"

He let go, and she fell. So this was how she was going to die. Wingless and screaming until she hit the ground. Internally she begged for another chance. A chance to love, to go on an adventure, to help others, to fly.

She closed her eyes. Was this what flying felt like? No of course not, stupid. This is what dying felt like. The air being sucked out of you. She felt like she couldn't breathe.

The four angels above stared silently at each other, as Mikan's last words sunk in. An angel without wings? Did such a thing even exist?

The angel named Ruka suddenly dove for the falling Mikan. He caught her in his arms just before she hit and silently placed her on the ground. She shook violently, her whole body protested. Her legs gave way and she gasped for air. The cracks in the ground blurred in her vision, her eyes grew wide.

The wind whistled as it blew through the courtyard and the other angels descended. A strong gust of air engulfed them and Mikan was forced to close her eyes. What caused that strong gust of wind? That was not normal wind.

She opened her eyes and glanced up. Her eyes traveled until they landed on the fountain. They widened as she took in the sight. Someone was standing on top of the fountain's head, unmoving, perfectly balanced. He was tall from what she could tell. When did he get there? She hadn't heard him approach.

She could do nothing but stare. This angel was dressed in all black, a very unusual choice in Cloud Alice. Angels never really wore black, but this one sported it like it was his daily attire. How odd and unnerving.

"Ah. Natsume," Ruka exclaimed. "Looks like Yuu managed to sneak away."

Mikan looked around hastily for Yuu, only to see that he was nowhere to be seen. He must have escaped when he had the chance. She looked back to the guy standing atop the fountain and watched silently as he crouched down and jumped down to the ground in front of her. If she had any breath left she would have lost it. He glanced down at her and Mikan felt her skin prickle as she stared back into his eyes, crimson. She felt like she was drowning in them. It hurt to continue looking but she couldn't avert her gaze.

"An angel without wings," he stated.

Mikan gulped. She didn't like how he stated the obvious about her. She felt weak and defenseless in this new angel's presence.

"You should really mind your own business," he said.

She could feel her legs again and she abruptly stood up and got in his face.

"I'm not afraid of you," she spat at him, her legs wavered slightly.

She saw something flicker in his eyes at her words. Annoyance?

"Tch," was his reply. He stared down at his hand and her gaze followed his. He extended his hand, and then he knew she was looking a flame erupted from his palm.

He could wield fire! Mikan took one step away from him and the heat that came from him. Angels that could wield powers were uncommon and for him to be able to wield fire was unheard of. Such a deadly and destructive power.

"Are you afraid of fire, little girl?" he asked, the flame was reflected in his eyes and made them appear deadly.

"Of course not," Mikan countered.

"So then are you scared of the dark?"

Mikan's eyes narrowed. "I'm not afraid of the dark either!" The dark? What did that have to do with anything?

He shook his hand and the flame extinguished. One last time he looked into her eyes. Crimson met brown.

"You should be," were his final words. A smirk crossed his face. Suddenly, he materialized his wings. Mikan fell to the ground from the mere force of them, but that wasn't all. His wings were black. Black as night, jet black. Her eyes widened as he quickly took off leaving nothing but a gust of wind and flying dust behind in his place. The other angels quickly went their own ways as well, leaving Mikan utterly alone on the ground.

She had heard stories before, of such an angel. Spit back up from Hell itself. But they were only stories. It wasn't real. It was just a myth told to children to frighten them. The Black Angel.


	3. Sakuras

**Chapter Three: Sakuras**

Mikan was absentmindedly flipping through another book from the temple's vast collection. She couldn't concentrate, her mind kept returning to the other day when she had almost fallen to her death, to the black angel.

"Hello! Mikan are you there?"

"Oh. Hotaru, sorry," Mikan replied to her best friend.

"What's up with you?" Hotaru asked, glancing at the book Mikan was reading. "Still looking for answers about your wings?"

Mikan sighed. "No. I've pretty much exhausted all the knowledge on that subject."

"What's up with the genealogy and angel characteristics book then?"

Mikan racked her brain. She could lie to Hotaru but thought better against it. Besides maybe Hotaru could help. "I'm looking up info on the color of wings."

Hotaru narrowed her eyes at her best friend. "Why?"

"Ah well you see," Mikan chuckled nervously. "I had a run in the other day with something strange." And so Mikan recounted the events of yesterday with the black angel. She sunk further into her chair the longer she spoke as Hotaru's eyes shot bullets into her own.

"What were you thinking?" Hotaru demanded from her.

"I was only trying to help Yuu!"

"Mikan. Never do that again. Never confront him again. He's dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Mikan frowned. How could an angel be dangerous? "Have you met him before?"

Hotaru was always into some side business, shady or not, but Mikan knew Hotaru could hold her own against anyone.

Hotaru sighed. "Our paths have crossed a couple of times."

"Hotaru!" It was Mikan's turn to be concerned. "He wields fire."

"And you wield nothing," she retorted. "I can take care of myself."

"Ah. I guess it was foolish." Mikan could sense the frustration from her best friend. She closed the book she was reading. She hadn't found anything helpful anyway.

The two friends sat in silence for a moment. Hotaru was still silently seething and Mikan racked her brain for something to change the subject.

"Ah. Hotaru!" She jumped up, excitedly. "I need to go to the market to replace the strawberries I lost yesterday. Want to come with?"

The raven-haired girl smiled slightly. "Sure Mikan."

The two made their way to the market, walking side by side. Mikan was thankful that Hotaru would walk with her when she knew she could easily fly there herself. Hotaru would complain multiple times but Mikan knew Hotaru was a good person. Complaining was something Hotaru did best.

"Hey Hotaru," Mikan started. "Do you think I'll ever get wings?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Of course, silly. You are an angel."

Mikan was again thankful for a friend like Hotaru.

They arrived at the market around noon. They walked around for a bit not wanting to return to their homes so soon. After a quick lunch they made for the center of the market where Mikan could get some strawberries.

Mikan was in the process of rolling her eyes at something Hotaru said when she noticed someone. An angel from the other day. Ruka, if she remembered correctly.

She placed a hand on his shoulder and he turned around, eyes wide. They narrowed in recognition when he saw Mikan's face.

"Oh," was all he said.

"Thank you for catching me the other day," Mikan said cheerfully.

"Uh." He seemed uncomfortable, and it was a weird thing to thank someone for, especially since he was involved in the whole incident. "Sure."

"Hotaru! This is Ruka. From yesterday."

"You hurt my friend?" She stared ice daggers into him.

He noticeably tensed at her question and piercing gaze.

"No! No," he said quickly to her. "Sorry," he said turning towards Mikan.

"It's fine." She smiled. "What were you doing with those bullies anyway?"

He shrugged.

"That don't seem like nice people. Especially that black one. He—"

"Natsume," he interrupted her.

"What?"

"His name is Natsume."

Mikan didn't really care about his name. He was a bully after all but still she watched as his face reflected his emotions. Sadness. Comfort. Greif. Then he smiled at her.

"His intentions are honest and pure. Selfless," he murmured quietly. Mikan hardly heard him.

She stared back at him. He seemed to be struggling internally and she still couldn't see how bullying someone was a selfless act. She dismissed his comments and figured he was blindly following the so called Natsume. Ruka looked like a nice person anyway. Maybe she could convince him of ending his friendship with the bully.

Mikan glanced around the market as Hotaru uncomfortably stared at Ruka making him back away. Her eyes fell to a nearby stand. "Oh look over there!" She said grabbing Hotaru and Ruka by the arm and dragging them to a nearby stall of trinkets.

Ruka seemed taken aback by her action.

Hotaru shrugged at him. "She doesn't get out much."

Mikan picked up a small glass figurine of a flower. "Look guys! Sakuras are my favorite. Mr. Shopkeeper! I'll take this please."

She handed over her money and admired her new treasure. She dragged the two of them to almost every booth in the market. It was nearing dusk before Mikan turned to Ruka.

"Hey Ruka," she said. "I hope we can be friends."

He seemed shocked by her request.

"Sorry I stole the day away from you! Hopefully you didn't have anything going on." She laughed. "This was so fun."

Ruka smiled a little bit back at her. "Yes."

They were walking down the middle of the marketplace when Mikan suddenly stopped. Standing maybe about a hundred feet in front of her was the angel dressed in black, Natsume. He stood dead center, and the crowd parted around him, not touching him. His arms were crossed and he stared directly at her.

Ruka's gaze followed Mikan's. His eyes found Natsume and his smile grew.

"I should go," he said, making his way toward Natsume.

Mikan broke her stare. "Ah wait! Here take this." She placed the tiny Sakura figurine in his hand.

"To our friendship," she said.

He stared down at it. "Thank you."

Ruka made his way to Natsume and Mikan watched as he caught up to him and they disappeared into the crowd.

A strange feeling bubbled inside her.


	4. What's to Come

**Chapter Four: What's to Come**

It was raining, just a slight drizzle, nothing too bad. Days like this Mikan always reminisced about her parents. She walked by her grandpa serving food in the food hall, tip-toeing so he wouldn't hear her. He would ask her to help but she was feeling like doing something else.

She made her way to the door and carefully pushed it open. It creaked slightly but the hustle of everyone eating masked her sneaking out. She put up her hood and left the temple.

The cemetery where her parents were buried was only a fifteen minute walk away. She hadn't been in a couple months and she was felt like a visit was in order.

She hardly knew her parents. She wished she did, but they were gone before she was even two, both of them. Her dad passed first before she was even born, then her mom, stricken with grief and despair shortly after. Everything she knew about them came from stories her grandpa told her. How they met. How they loved her. How they laughed. What they did. How they were kind.

Mikan strived to be like them. She wanted to be kind to others, always seeing the best in them, and lending a hand when others needed it. It typically worked out for her, until the afternoon in the courtyard with the black angel. She was still trying to work that event out in her head.

She reached the cemetery and stood briefly, paying her respects to everyone that was fallen and buried there. She walked slowly to where her parents were buried, their grave was slightly weathered.

She crouched down in front of their grave and traced their names with her finger, IZUMI & YUKA, as she had done so many times before.

She reached into her bag and retrieved the flowers she brought to place on their grave. The pink carnations were bright compared to the drizzly rainy backdrop.

"Hi Mom, Dad," she whispered.

She knelt now on the ground, not caring that it was wet and that her clothes would get wet too.

"How are you? It's been quiet lately."

The wind picked and the trees swayed around her.

"I miss you."

The rain pelted against her hood, and she pulled it tighter.

"I've been selfish lately," she said closing her eyes. "I wished for wings again."

To anyone else it wouldn't have seemed like a selfish wish. To fly when everyone else could. To belong. Her grandpa taught her to think of others first though.

Her eyes flew open when she heard the sound of footprints on wet ground.

"Mind if I join you?" her best friend asked.

"You are always welcome," Mikan said.

Hotaru knelt down beside her and placed some purple colored flowers next to Mikan's carnations.

"They're lovely," Mikan smiled. "Thank you."

"I had a feeling you would be here, in the rain. You'll catch a cold, stupid."

"I know. I just wanted to say hi."

"Does your grandpa know you're here?"

"Ah. Not exactly."

Hotaru stood up. "Oh well. Might as well enjoy this beautiful weather."

Hotaru always was a little different, always preferring the opposite of the norm. Mikan was quite familiar her preference for the different.

"I wonder if the market has anything discounted today?" Hotaru went on. "Maybe I can sell your smiles."

This got Mikan to laugh. "Hey now."

"Come on, silly, let's go get something to eat."

They left the cemetery arm in arm and headed toward the market. The flowers they left behind, now weighed down with droplets of rain.

The rain had picked up on the way to the market so the two took shelter on the nearest hill under a large tree. They leaned against the trunk and watched in the distance as the crowd hurried across the marketplace, trying to avoid the downpour.

"This stinks!" Mikan exclaimed, "Go away rain!" She shooed it with her arms.

"It hasn't rained in a while," Hotaru simply said.

"Yeah but at this rate Grandpa will know I snuck out."

"Oh yeah. He knows, he sent me to come get you."

"Wait. What?"

Hotaru turned and placed her hand on Mikan's shoulder.

"He treats me like I'm going to shatter at any moment!"

"I mean you are pretty fragile."

"Am not!"

The raven haired girl only stared back as if proving her point.

Mikan threw her hands up in the air. "I am not fragile. I am very tough. I took on those bullies the other day you know. I had it completely under control." That was a lie but she wasn't going to tell her best friend that. "I can handle anyth—ahh!"

Lightning struck and the ground cracked. Startled Mikan, lost her footing. Hotaru, stoic as ever, remained standing and snapped her attention to the source of the crack. She watched as the crack widened. It was dangerously close to a lot of residential homes.

Mikan finally stood and looked in the direction of the crack. "That was crazy!"

She looked at her best friend and watched as her expression went from concentration to one of shock or was it fear? She looked back at the crack herself, then gasped. Tens of shadow creatures were creeping up from the crack and slithering across the ground in every direction.

Mikan stood transfixed. She had never seen the shadows before. That's all they were as far as she could tell. Just shadows. How could something so lifeless and empty have caused so much devastation?

"We need to go," Hotaru said, grabbing her hand. "Now."

She started to run, Mikan tripped over her feet trying to get in sync with her.

Hotaru ran so fast that Mikan had a hard time keeping up with her, she was constantly being pulled.

"Wait Hotaru! Please, it hurts a little." She had been squeezing her hand. "They're so far away. We'll be fine."

Hotaru ignored her protests and kept up the pace. They ran. Others were running and flying away too, frantically. Everyone was trying to get away. They had reached the market and Mikan had never seen it so empty before. Everyone was locking themselves up. The doors were closing, and people were shouting. The first attack in months. Her grandpa would never let her out ever again.

Mikan's breathing was quick and hard now. She suddenly felt like a burden to Hotaru who could have easily flown home or to somewhere safe. Their feet sloshed on the wet ground and they hastened up the path to the temple.

Hotaru threw open the door when they reached it. The two were soaked, Mikan exhausted. Hotaru rested for only a moment before she took off again.

"Mikan, stay here."

"Wha—wait," she stuttered as her friend rushed out the door. Mikan watched as Hotaru materialized her wings. They glistened in the rain, sparkling dimly. They really were beautiful, an off white. Hotaru took flight and vanished from her sight.

"Mikan!"

She turned to be engulfed in her grandpa's arms.

"Heavens child. Where have you been?" He kept one arm around her and shut the door Hotaru just departed from tightly.

"Sorry Grandpa," she looked to the ground, "I visited my parents."

"Come, come. We're going to care for these people until things clear up."

Mikan looked up and finally took in her surroundings. There were people everywhere in the main room. They were huddled in groups, some crying, some nervous, others quietly staring off.

"This attack has startled so many people. We will do our best to make them comfortable."

And so they did. Mikan and her grandfather along with others that worked in the temple helped as much as they could, handing out blankets, warm food, comforting words. It was nearly midnight by the time she got a break. This had been the typical response to a shadow attack. The temple would open its doors and help those that needed it.

She wandered the temple absentmindedly, it had so many hallways, so many turns, and so many secret rooms. Her hand grazed the wall next to her as she wandered.

She rounded a corner when she came upon her friend Misaki, who also worked in the temple.

"Oh Misaki."

"Shh. Shh!" She hushed her, waving her over.

Misaki was crouched in front of a door, her ear pressed against it. Mikan quietly walked over to her and stuck her ear to the door too. A lot of people were talking at once.

"—People were attacked."

"Not sure."

"Why now?"

"It was so close to the residential area!"

"Hush! Keep your voice down."

"What do we do?"

"There were so many, I've never seen that many before."

More panicking, now. It was hard to pick out voices.

"What do they even want?"

"How many were taken?" Mikan gasped. Misaki hushed her. This voice belonged to her grandpa.

"That we know of? Eleven."

The voices quieted. Mikan and Misaki's eyes widened. Eleven taken? In all the attacks ever never had eleven been taken. Always one at a time if any. The two girls looked at each other.

"Yo Misaki!"

The girls jumped at the new voice. There was now movement from the other side of the door, and the two ran towards the new voice, and rounded the corner.

"Tsubasa!" Misaki hit the boy across his head and covered his mouth. "You idiot!"

They heard the door open and furthered themselves from the area, snaking their way through the temple. They sat in an empty stairwell.

Tsubasa, now free spoke up. "What the hell was that for?"

"We were trying to listen!" Misaki answered.

Tsubasa also worked in the temple. The two were older than Mikan by a couple years but they still hung out with her at times and kept her company. They treated her as their equal and not like a fragile piece of glass.

"You mean you were eavesdropping?"

Misaki shrugged. "Same thing."

"Anything good?" he asked her. "Yo Squirt," he directed towards Mikan.

"Eleven people." Misaki looked crestfallen.

They sat in silence letting the day's events sink in. Months without an attack and now finally a large and devastating one. This was going to change things. It was the start of something. No one knew what, but it was definitely the start to something big.


	5. Struck by Lightning

**Chapter Five: Struck by Lightning**

Mikan was woken abruptly from her sleep by a loud knock on her door. She glanced to her open balcony and outside, the sun was only just rising. She groaned. She probably only got four hours of sleep. Her thoughts were restless from yesterday.

"Rise and shine lovely!" Misaki had swung her door open and intruded into her space.

"Go away," Mikan mumbled into her pillow.

"Hey, ungrateful twerp. I didn't even get to go home last night. Tsubasa and I slept on some benches. Get up."

Misaki yanked the blanket off her body and Mikan shivered.

"Why?"

"We're needed in the kitchen to make some food."

"Fine, fine. Just give me five. Where's my grandpa?"

"He left way early with some soldiers to do some recovery, so who knows."

Misaki plopped herself down on Mikan's bed and let out a sigh. "Ahhh, so nice."

Mikan rolled her eyes and reached for some pants on the floor.

"Pants today?" Misaki questioned.

"Yeah, why not?" she said slipping the tan pants on. Light colored clothing was the norm for all angels anyway.

"So I heard you ran off yesterday." Misaki tsked at her.

Mikan turned towards her, her white shirt in her hands. "I'm nineteen. I think I am old enough to go out on my own."

"Yeah, well..." Misaki knew that this was a touchy subject for Mikan.

"Don't even start with me Misaki."

"I'm only looking out for you."

"You moved out from your parents' house at seventeen!" Mikan countered. "You have no room to talk here. At least you can leave this place." She gestured to her room, but meant the whole temple.

"I'm not alone though. Tsubasa is always around."

They left her room now and headed towards the kitchen.

"You two live together, of course he's always around. You're practically dating."

"We aren't dating!" Misaki exclaimed. "It's just cheaper for us to live together, plus he's a guy, safety and all that." She waved her hand emphasizing the safety part of their arrangement.

"Oh shut up. You love him." They had reached the kitchen now.

"Love who?" Tsubasa suddenly asked.

"Ah!" Misaki exclaimed furiously. "No one. No one." She quickly made her way to the opposite side of the kitchen.

Mikan found her friends Anna and Nonoko and made her way towards them. They were stirring something.

"What's going on?" Mikan asked. "Why the sudden need for a packed kitchen?"

Anna smiled at her. "Not a morning person I see."

Nonoko put the stirring spoon in her hand. "We're making food for the soldiers and other helpers now."

"Soldiers?" Mikan questioned.

"Yeah. They came to help out with the attack. I guess this one was pretty serious."

Mikan was reminded of the night before when she and Misaki were eavesdropping.

"Confirmed 26 were taken last night, children and adults." Anna said, "How terrifying!"

26? Mikan froze. 26 was such a large number. What was going on?

"So many more injured too," Nonoko added.

Misaki interrupted their conversation. "Hey the Ice Queen is out there in the food hall."

Mikan perked up. Ice Queen was what Misaki called Hotaru on the count of Misaki freezing up whenever Hotaru was near. Mikan dropped the spoon into the pot causing it to splash the girls. They jumped slightly and frowned.

"Mikan, ew!"

"Sorry!" she called back.

She rushed into the food hall and was shocked by how full it was. Every table was full of people. Groups of soldiers with their golden emblems on their shoulder pads, volunteers were sporting purple ribbons on their wrists, and then families. So many families, looking like they lost something dear to them. They had even brought in additional tables, still some were standing and eating, others milling about.

She searched the hall for Hotaru. It was so noisy and busy she had trouble locating her amongst the chaos. She finally spotted her off to the right, she was walking somewhere. Mikan jumped and sprinted to her.

"Hotaru!" she yelled.

Mikan looked into her friend's eyes, grasped her by the shoulders and shook her.

"What were you thinking? You big idiot!" She continued shaking her. Annoyance flickered across Hotaru's face. "You can't just leave like that!"

Mikan shook her some more causing her to bump into the guy next to her. He stumbled, spilling his drink.

"Ah, sorry!" Mikan apologized.

The guy looked up to her, recognition dawned on his face.

"Ruka!" Mikan shouted, startling those nearby. "And you!" She pointed to the guy next to him.

He furrowed his brows and crossed his arms. "Koko."

"Right," Mikan replied.

"Stupid," a small voice said.

Mikan blinked, and looked down. A little boy with grey hair had spoken. His hair was wet with whatever Ruka had been drinking. His small hand held Ruka's.

Mikan smiled, and bent down to meet his eyes. "How cute! I'm so sorry little guy."

"Stupid," he repeated.

Mikan stared as the little kid glared at her. It gave her goosebumps.

"Ah!" Mikan mumbled, "What a demonic aurora."

She stood now. "Hi," she said to Ruka.

A slight tinge of red flushed his cheeks. "Hello," he said

"What brings you guys here? You're not here to bully someone are you?"

"Koko's place was damaged in the attack," he said, "and we were looking for shelter. Also, Yoichi was scared."

Mikan put two and two together and determined the Yoichi was the little demon boy holding his hand.

"Oh! I can set you up somewhere," Mikan said and directed everyone out of the food hall.

She turned toward Hotaru. "Hey what are you doing here exactly? Apologizing for leaving yesterday?"

"No," she said flatly. "I came here to sell things to these poor people."

Mikan faltered. That was Hotaru. Always looking for a way to make money, no matter what the situation. As she was now, bargaining with Koko over some necessities he absolutely needed since he was now considered homeless.

"Hotaru, how cold of you," Mikan muttered to herself. She turned toward Yoichi. "So Yoichi how old are you?"

Yoichi ignored her and hid behind Ruka's leg instead.

"He's four," Ruka answered for him.

Mikan led them down a corridor and stopped in front of a room. She opened the door, inside there was a bed pushed against the wall, a single dresser, a desk and a wooden stool. The curtains were already drawn back and the morning sun was shining through the window.

"It's not much," Mikan said, "a lot of our rooms are taken after this attack."

Koko pushed his way into the room and fell on the bed. "It's more than I have now and I've been up all night."

They let Koko be, allowing him to get some rest. Yoichi was beginning to get restless and the group decided to find somewhere quiet for him to relax. They were in one of the only unoccupied rooms now, paper and coloring supplies were scattered across the floor for Yoichi to draw with.

Hotaru was busy sketching out some business plan while Ruka let Yoichi sit in his lap and color. Mikan silently watched.

Ruka had told her that Yoichi was orphaned and alone often. His parents died at a very young age and Mikan felt connected to him on that fact. Yoichi had no living relatives though that would take him in. She watched the boy intently and felt sorry for him. It must be so scary and terrifying having no one. She didn't know what she would do if her grandpa wasn't around.

Yoichi suddenly pointed to her and then his paper. Mikan glanced down and frowned. "Is that me?" she asked.

He nodded. He had drawn her, but it looked like she was being struck by lightning. She noticed though that he drew her with wings. Her heart, already heavy with sadness, felt heavier. She traced the wings with her finger. When she finished tracing them she glanced up and saw Ruka staring at her.

"Sorry." He blushed and quickly averted his gaze to look around the room.

Mikan put on smile. "Don't be, I'm used to it actually."

At this Hotaru moved over to crouch next to her and glanced down at the drawing.

"He's good," she said. "He got your expression perfect."

Yoichi reached for more paper and started on a new drawing.

"Why do I have to be struck by lightning though?" Mikan whined.

"Stupid," Yoichi muttered.

"Hey!" Mikan cried. "As his care taker you should really teach him nicer words."

Ruka shifted slightly. "Actually, Natsume is the one that usually cares for him."

"What?" Mikan cried.

"Yes, he watches out for him, feeds him, cares for him." Ruka looked down at the boy in his lap, he was silent for a while before adding, "Yoichi really likes him."

As if proving Ruka's words Yoichi presented Ruka with a new finished picture. Two people were sitting underneath what appeared to be a fully blossoming Sakura tree. Natsume and Yoichi.

"If he cares for him so much then why isn't he here with him?" Hotaru asked.

Mikan was shocked by Hotaru's harsh question. She too wondered why he wasn't there when Yoichi was so scared, and after such a horrible attack, but she never would have asked it. He must have had a good reason for not being with him. Mikan wanted nothing more to be with her grandpa and best friend at a time like this.

She glanced up from the drawing and her thoughts to the door. Her eyes widened as she saw him. He was leaning against the frame, dressed in his usual black. She was the only one who noticed his presence. His eyes guarded like usual, he looked exhausted.

Yoichi suddenly hopped off Ruka's lap and Natsume met him halfway, he fell to his knees and embraced Yoichi in a hug. He pulled him in tight.

Mikan stared in awe. She couldn't believe that Yoichi and Natsume cared so deeply for each other. It baffled her. The guy in front of her hugging a four year old was the same one that helped bully that poor Yuu, the same guy that held fire. She watched as his eyes closed and he rested his head on Yoichi's in a protective manner. His black hair falling across his eyes. A shimmer from his ear caught her eye and she noticed he had a golden cuff on one, and glancing to other she saw a smaller red piercing.

Ruka spoke first. "You're back, thank God," he sighed in relief, now standing next to their hugging bodies.

Natsume opened his eyes and picked up Yoichi. He held him in his arms as he sat in a chair.

Ruka quickly moved to sit next to him. "How is it out there?"

His eyes snapped to Mikan's and she caught herself off guard. "Uh," she fumbled, his eyes narrowed. She felt like she was intruding in their space even though she was the one that lived in the temple. The whole situation was weird. She had just met the guys a little bit ago, too.

"Bad," he started, "What are you doing here with this idiot?" he nodded towards Mikan.

"Hey! Just a minute now," Mikan retaliated.

"She set Koko up in a room," Ruka explained.

"Why am I getting called an idiot now?" Mikan cried.

Natsume ignored her. "They attacked again this morning," he told Ruka.

Hotaru suddenly spoke up. "Where at?" she asked him.

"South of the mountain."

Everyone watched as she took out a notebook and scribbled something down. Everyone sat in silence for a moment letting the news of the new attack sink in.

Yoichi being four removed himself from Natsume's lap and walked over to his drawings. He picked some up and showed them to Natsume. Yoichi pointed to the one of Mikan being struck by lightning. "Stupid," he said.

Mikan faltered. "Wait!" She was getting called a lot of names lately. She pointed to Natsume, "You need to teach this kid nicer words!"

"His words are fine," Natsume said patting Yoichi on the head.

"Ugly!" Yoichi chimed.

"What?" Mikan spun towards the boy.

"Ugly!" he repeated.

Mikan looked back to Natsume. "Get that smirk off your face," she told him, "He needs a womanly touch in his life."

"You think you're qualified in that department?" His eyes looked her up and down.

Mikan found herself squirming under his gaze. She felt her cheeks becoming warm.

"Yes!" she retorted. "No. Argh. I don't know. You're probably teaching him all sorts of perverted things."

"He's four."

"Yeah well—"

"MIIKAAAAAN!" She was interrupted by someone shouting in the hallway. A figure ran past their room and skidded to a halt reappearing in the doorway.

"Tsubasa?" Mikan asked confused.

He stood in the doorway, panting, he looked like he had ran a marathon.

"Mikan," he breathed, "your—" breath "grandpa—" breath.

She took a step closer to him. "What is it?"

He panted some more before continuing. "There was another attack this morning."

Her heart accelerated.

"The soldiers and helpers that left early this morning, they were attacked by the mountain."

Hotaru now stood next to Mikan.

"They just returned—"

Mikan's heart beat in her ears. They returned. Good news then, but Tsubasa didn't look happy.

"—They were ambushed."

Mikan took another step, her eyes wide. She felt Hotaru's hand on her wrist.

"Your grandpa," Tsubasa looked down at the ground before continuing. "He didn't come back with the group."


	6. Running

**Chapter Six: Running**

Outside the sky was crying heavily. Her feet kicked up water as they came in contact with the ground. She had to find him. Her grandpa.

Tsubasa's words echoed in her head. "He didn't come back." She had shoved past his and Hotaru's grip and pleas to come back. They tried to follow but only she knew the ground. They might have known the skies, but the ground was her specialty. Besides they would make her come back just to sit and worry. They would tell her she would be helpless and an endangerment to herself.

She weaved in and out of the trees. They rain was thick, the ground muddy. She reached the forest before the mountain and cautiously entered. It looked like it had changed since the last time she went through it months ago.

Her heart and mind were racing. Not her grandpa. He couldn't be missing, he couldn't be taken, he couldn't be gone. She would have no one then. No Mom. No Dad. No Grandpa.

She tripped over a fallen branch in the forest. The rain and thick trees made it difficult to see.

"No. No. No," she cried, her palms on the forest floor. "This isn't happening."

She pushed herself up and ran. The mountain was a short fly away, but on feet the trip was tiresome and long.

The edge of the forest was in her sight now. She glanced out when she reached it. The new crack was small. She had never been so close to one before. Tiptoeing, she made her way towards it. Her eyes were alert, searching for shadows remaining. There were no other remnants present, none from the soldiers or group from the morning earlier. It was as if nothing happened, except the crack that left a trench deep into the ground, endless and dark.

She peered down into the crack, she could see nothing but the rain falling steadily into it. She gulped thinking about how deep it was and about what lay below.

"Grandpa," she whispered. "Where are you?"

Silently, she walked around the crack to the base of the mountain.

"Did you hide?"

She looked up to the top of the mountain. He could have hid, found somewhere safe. With a final look behind her, she started to climb. He probably went to higher ground. The terrain was rough and slippery. She slipped often but kept going, always looking for her precious Grandpa.

She reached up to grab a rock jutting out. Her fingers curled around the edges and she pulled hard. The rock gave way and her hand slipped, grasping for anything. Her palm scraped against something hard and she winced, feeling a rock slice through it.

Lifting her hand, she eyed the new gash in her palm. It hurt like hell, but it would not stop her, not now, not ever. The rain was still falling and now it clouded her eyes. She reached up again with her other hand and pulled herself up.

It had been hours since she'd left, hours since she started climbing. The sky was dark with clouds, she couldn't tell the time. Her stomach ached with hunger.

She finally reached the top of the mountain. It was flat like a plateau and windy. She was exhausted, soaked and numb. There was no sign of her Grandpa. She suddenly regretted trekking up the mountain, after all if her Grandpa was able he would have flown away. At the time it hadn't crossed her mind.

She walked over to the opposite edge and looked over. There was water on this side of the base. Her feet curled close to the edge of the cliff, and she imagined diving from this height. It might feel like flying, or it might feel like dying, she wasn't sure.

She sat on the edge, hung her legs over and laid down, staring up into the rainy sky. The tears came quickly and the rain washed them away even quicker, they blended into one. She was alone, and she was scared.

A glance at her hand reminded her of the gash she got earlier. She sat up and examined it, it needed to be wrapped. Frowning, she realized she had nothing. She gathered some of the fabric from her shirt and crumbled it in her hand.

She crossed her legs and looked down again. She felt unsteady. Heights could do that to someone so vulnerable, someone so wingless. An angel without wings, hoe pathetic. Gathering more fabric from her shirt, she ripped it off with her teeth and formed a bandage around her palm.

It was shoddy work, but it would have to do. She didn't think she could make it back down the mountain until the rain stopped, besides she had no energy left. The last of her energy was expelled with her tears.

So she sat, cross legged and stared out over the cliff. She imagined her friends were out looking for her. Hotaru was probably furious and would pummel her when they met up again, if they ever did.

She closed her eyes again, shielding them from the rain. She felt the wind pick up and let out a scream. All her anger, frustration, sadness, she let it go. It hung in the air shortly, not wanting to be forgotten.

A voice interrupted the silence suddenly, "Are you done now?"

Her eyes flew open and she quickly stood, turning around, glimpsing at black. Her foot slipped on the ground and she lost her balance. "Oh!" Her eyes widened as she realized her foot hit air instead of the solid mountain top.

Quickly he reached out for her arm. His hand, hot to the touch, wrapped around her arm and he pulled her towards him. She stumbled into his grasp. Her arms braced against his chest. She inhaled deeply, he smelled like pine trees, cinnamon, a mixture. It was intoxicating.

Realizing who she was leaned up against she abruptly broke the embrace and stepped away from him.

"Uh, thank you," she mumbled and hung her head hoping to hide the blush threatening to show on her cheeks.

"What the hell?" he said gruffly.

She looked up, he looked angry.

"Take that nasty thing off," he said gesturing to her shirt.

She looked down at her white shirt, or supposed to be white. It was covered in dirt, blood, and every fiber was soaked.

Now she really blushed. "No! I don't have anything else to wear."

His eyes narrowed at her, before he started unbuttoning his jacket. He shrugged it off and tossed it to her.

She stared down at it. The material repelled the rain and she so badly wanted to put it on. "Turn around," she said.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, pervert."

He obliged and she peeled the wet fabric off her skin. She slid her arms into the sleeves and started buttoning it. He turned around as she was buttoning the last ones.

"Wait! I'm not done yet."

"Like there's anything to see anyway."

She huffed at his comment. The jacket was nice though, it was warm and more importantly, dry.

She glanced at him now. He stood staring at her. His crossed arms, now bare glistened with fresh drops of rain. He was totally annoyed, she noticed.

"I didn't need any help," she said flatly.

He ignored her and asked his own question. "Do you have a death wish?"

"What?" She was shocked by his question. "No."

"You almost just fell off a cliff."

"Only because you startled me!"

"You're bleeding."

"It's just a scratch."

"Were you even thinking?"

She faltered at this question. "I just—only wanted to find Grandpa..." She looked down at her feet now, she was unsure but she felt compelled to be honest with him. "He's all I have. I can't lose him too."

"You thought you could find him?"

"I don't know, yeah. Maybe."

"You can't fly. You can't even protect yourself from yourself." He gestured to all of her.

She was getting flustered now. "Why are you even here?" She didn't need his judgment, and his prying questions.

He didn't answer. Instead he walked towards her and reached around behind her. She felt the warmth from his body. She stood frozen, unsure of his intentions. He pulled the hood from his jacket over her head and stepped back slightly.

"Your face is hideous," he said.

Mikan growled at him. "No one asked you to look at it!" she spat.

"Come on, let's go."

"Fine!" She huffed, and walked towards where she climbed up.

"What are you doing?" He stared at her.

"Well, I can't fly, remember?" She sneered at him, "Jumping seems out of the question too."

She watched as he narrowed his eyes. He materialized his wings and her eyes widened. Still pitch black, the falling rain made them shimmer in the faint moonlight.

"Get over here," he demanded.

"Why" she asked.

Her response was met with a glare. She hesitated then made her way towards him. "Okay. Now what?"

"Hold on," he said easily sweeping her off her feet.

"Wha—"

Natsume crouched down and took off. Mikan's scream was lost somewhere in her stomach. She grasped tightly around his neck and buried her face in him. He flew effortlessly with the wind to avoid the rain pelting them.

The rain penetrated her wet clothes and froze her body. It was a cold day for the summer. "Oh God," she murmured to herself. She snuck a peak and immediately regretted it. She saw the mountain and forest below her. He was definitely covering more ground quicker than she had. That's flying for you. She shut her eyes tightly when she felt him change directions.

The wind died down but she still refused to loosen her grip and open her eyes. Her body was stiff and she was cold, exhausted, and drained.

"You can let go now," Natsume told her. Slowly she opened her eyes and saw that they were on the ground, in the courtyard where they first met by the looks of it. She slowly pried her fingers apart and collapsed on the ground in front of him.

"Mikan!"

"Natsume!"

Ruka and Hotaru ran towards them.

Hotaru reached her first. "You idiot," she said nearly knocking her to the ground.

"You found her Natsume?" Ruka asked.

He nodded.

Hotaru now yelled at Mikan. "Everyone is out looking for you! Stupid! How could you do something so rash? So blind?"

"Hotaru," Mikan said weakly. "Please."

Hotaru knelt and embraced her best friend in a hug.

"Ruka," Natsume said. "We should go. It's late, I'm wet, and Yoichi is probably hungry."

"Okay, yeah," he replied. "I'm glad you're safe," he told Mikan.

Mikan watched as the two took off, flying in sync with each other.

"Hotaru, I'm so tired."

"Let's go home now," her friend said.

They pushed open the door to the temple and fell to the floor. The rain had been relentless until the very end. They were greeted by Nonoko and Anna.

"Mikan! You're okay!" Nonoko gushed.

"Thank goodness!" Anna cried.

More joined her as they helped her up to her room. Tsubasa, Misaki, even Koko accompanied by Sumire.

"Let's get her out of these wet clothes," Misaki suggested.

"Mikan," Nonoko started. "What are you wearing?"

She looked down at her attire. Nonoko was probably talking about the black jacket. "It's Natsume's," she explained.

"What?" Sumire asked loudly. "Why would he give that to you?"

"Who's Natsume?" Misaki asked, ignoring her.

Hotaru answered first. "He's the angel with the black wings."

Nonoko and Anna together gasped.

"Mikan! Is that true?" Misaki asked.

The feared angel with the black wings. The angel that wields fire. The black angel. Most thought it was a rumor, a story, a myth, a joke.

"Oh please," Sumire interjected. "Yes, it's true. It's not like he's a myth or anything, God."

"Well, uh, I'll go get some clean bandages." Tsubasa said leaving. Koko followed not wanting to be around when they undressed her.

The girls silently peeled the wet clothes off Mikan. She shivered.

"Get her in the shower." Hotaru said.

They worked away silently, scrubbing the dirt, rain, and blood away from her skin. They dressed her in one of her nightgowns and Hotaru braided her hair down her back. The boys returned and the bandage on her hand was replaced. They all put her to bed. Her head hit her pillow and sleep overtook her.


	7. Good News

**Chapter Seven: Good News**

Mikan woke when the sun shone on her eyelids. She sat up, feeling sore all over. Yesterday's events ran through her head and she was bitterly reminded of the disappearance of her Grandpa.

She sniffed and smelled tea. Someone had placed a mug with hot tea on the table next to her bed. There was a folded note with her name on it. It was in Hotaru's handwriting.

 _Come down to the infirmary when you wake up._

She flung her feet out of her bed and rushed for the door leaving everything behind. The infirmary! Someone must be injured. She rushed down the stairs and skidded to a halt. A group of people were sitting down outside the doors.

Misaki saw her first. "Geez! Mikan, you're still in your nightgown."

Mikan glanced at the group of people recognizing everyone and more from yesterday, minus Natsume, and then down to her gown. Her gown was very sheer, she was basically naked.

"Ahhhhh," she said fumbling and blushing.

An older solider, unbuttoned his jacket and handed it to her.

"Sorry," Mikan said. "Thanks Sakurano," she said to her superior. One of the soldiers that used to work at the temple before enlisting.

Mikan watched as the door to the infirmary and Hotaru's older brother stepped out. He was always busy as he had the ability to heal. A most valued ability and respected power in Cloud Alice. It had its limits but still he was in a lot of demand and always traveling.

"What's going on?" Mikan asked. "Who's hurt?"

Hello Mikan," Hoataru's brother said to her. "Your Grandpa came back late last night. He's just woken now."

She stood momentarily transfixed. Her grandpa was okay. Relief flooded out of her and a smile broke out across her face.

"You can see him now."

"Grandpa," she cheered walking in. He was propped up against pillows in one of the middle beds.

He smiled weakly as she approached. "Mikan, my child."

Tears streamed down her face as she reached for his hand. "You're okay."

Hotaru's brother spoke now. "He has slight paralysis on the left side of his body. He will be bed ridden for a while until we can hopefully cure it. I've done the best I can."

"Paralyzed?" Hotaru asked.

He shook his head. "Yes. Unfortunately I do not know how or why. No one does."

"I'll be fine," Mikan's Grandpa croaked, "I never liked that side anyway. Always giving me aches. Go bother someone else now Imai."

Everyone was cheerfully celebrating Grandpa's return and slightly limited mobility when he suddenly asked to speak to Mikan privately.

"Sure, Grandpa." Mikan shrugged to her friends and they made to exit the infirmary.

"Hotaru," he called to her, "stay."

Hotaru stopped in her tracks, reached out a hand and griped Ruka's shoulder, forcing him to stop as well. She directed them back to the bed. Mikan was confused by the exchange.

"What is it Grandpa?"

"Mikan," he started. "You must promise me something. Indulge your old man."

"Anything!"

"You must never go outside, and always smile."

Her eyes fluttered rapidly trying to discern what he said. "What?"

"Hotaru," he nodded to her. She nodded back in understanding. She was to make sure Mikan never stepped outside.

"You can't keep me cooped up in here! What kind of promise is that?"

"It's for your own good."

"My own good? What does that even mean?"

"Mikan," he coughed suddenly, causing her to worry. "It was a shadow that did this to me."

"A shadow?" Ruka asked.

"How did you get away?" Hotaru asked.

"Yes," another cough, he spoke slowly now. "It was awful, an icy chill, it engulfed me, my leg, and it grabbed me. Consumed me. I don't know how I got away. I can't remember what I saw. It was all a blur. I'm sorry."

Mikan felt out of the conversation. She didn't understand. "What does this have to do with me going outside?"

Her Grandpa looked into her eyes now. "Mikan, you cannot let them get you. You must stay safe." He turned to look at Hotaru and Ruka. "You must keep her safe."

"What?" Mikan was still confused. She watched as Hotaru's brother made his way back to them.

"We should let him rest now, sorry."

"Mikan," her Grandpa whispered. "Promise?"

She didn't answer him, instead she squeezed his hand. She couldn't lie to him, but she could only keep one of those promises; she had no intention of staying within the walls of the temple. There was no way, especially now. Things were getting serious. She glanced to Ruka and Hotaru. Ruka eyes were moving quickly, he was deep in thought, concentrating hard. Hotaru was eyeing the door.

Ruka spoke first, "I need to go." He turned toward Mikan. "Sorry."

"Yes, I have business as well," Hotaru said marching out the door.

"What? Okay." Mikan replied lamely watching them leave together. She returned the coat she borrowed from Sakurano, thanking him again, and sighed.

She sulked the whole way back to her room. Everything had been so cryptic and she didn't understand. Her Grandpa didn't want her to leave. Was it because of her not having wings? Not being able to escape quickly enough? Did he know something secret about her and why did Hotaru and Ruka have to leave suddenly? She was so frustrated.

She slammed her room door behind her and leaned against it. Her eyes scanned her room, to the open balcony, her unmade bed, the now cold cup of tea by her bed, and to the black jacket folded on her dresser. She walked over to it and held it in her hands.

Remembering the last week and change of pace she thought deeply. Had she been acting cowardly and foolish? Yeah, she shouldn't have run away. She should have acted more rationally, instead of endangering herself and others around her.

Quickly she changed out of her nightgown, slipping on a simple white dress. Gripping the black jacket she left her room and headed downstairs. She had to start somewhere and if she was going to break her promise anyway she might as well just get it over with. She found Koko's room and gently knocked.

She heard fumbling around before an answer. "Yeah?" Koko called.

"It's me," she said, "Mikan."

She heard movement on the other side of his door and suddenly he cracked it open slightly. Koko stood between the door and the frame, shirtless. "What's up?" he asked casually.

"Ah, sorry," she averted her eyes.

"It's fine."

"Okay. Well," Mikan raked her brain for words. "I was wondering if… uh maybe. You could show me where, uh, Natsume lives." She looked up at him now and noticed a half open grin on his face. "If you can, I guess." His grin kept getting bigger the more she fumbled for words. "I have his jacket you see?" She held it up for him. "I just thought th—"

"Oh for the love of God!" a girl called.

Mikan's eyed widened. "Is that Sumire?"

The door swung open and there she stood. Her curly hair was slightly messy and her clothes were wrinkled.

"In the flesh."

Realization dawned on Mikan. "Oh my God! Am I interrupting something here?"

Koko turned to Sumire. "She wants to go see Natsume."

"Yeah, I heard," she said rolling her eyes. "It's a bad idea."

"I'll buy you the biggest batch of Howalon from the market," Mikan said hopefully.

Howalon was a delicacy from the market. Pure fluffy goodness. Mikan watched as they stared at each other for a while, occasionally their expressions would change. It was like they were speaking telepathically.

"All right," Koko finally said.

Mikan smiled, "Really?"

"Yeah."

"That's great! Thank you so much."

Sumire, tired of her new found bubbliness sneered. "Get that smile off your face. Let's go."

"Okay," Mikan replied.

Mikan kept close behind them to their annoyance as they left the temple. So she broke her promise immediately, but at least she was keeping close to two angels she figured were strong. It wasn't until they were near the marketplace that she gradually distanced herself from them.

"So where are we going?" Mikan asked.

"Just follow," Koko said.

They weaved in and out of the town in places Mikan had never visited before, down alleyways and through buildings. She felt like they were purposefully leading her astray so she wouldn't remember the way back, that or they too didn't know where Natsume was. Mikan noticed that the angels frequenting the areas also looked different. They weren't as bright looking, and even dressed in darker shades. She had no idea such a place existed. Near the temple the dress code and angels that frequented the area were almost always pristine.

Suddenly, Koko stopped in front of a small pub. It was eerie looking, with a dark look to it. She would have passed it by otherwise.

"Koko, we should check somewhere else first," Sumire stated. Mikan noticed her eyes darted around the alley.

"He always knows where he is though," Koko told her.

Sumire nodded to Mikan. "We should check somewhere else."

"Fine, fine." Koko rolled his eyes at her.

They made to leave when the door to the pub opened slowly. Mikan watched as Sumire stiffened slightly.

A tall figure now stood in front of them. His skin was tight and ghastly, he looked ill or something. He was dressed in dark navy pants with a white shirt. It kind of freaked Mikan out. He had piercings littering his ears and nose, and dark hair that fell across his face.

"Koko, Sumire," he spoke, his tone was almost demeaning. "Won't you come in?"

Wordlessly Koko followed him in. Sumire, quietly pushed Mikan down on the bench in front of the pub. "Sit here," she hissed quietly. "Don't talk to anyone."

Shocked Mikan watched as they entered the pub, leaving her alone on the bench. She frantically looked down the street they were on. Everyone seemed to keep to themselves; they kept hidden and rushed everywhere. Mikan had no idea such a place existed in Cloud Alice. These angels didn't look good, they looked troubled and sketchy.

She suddenly felt conscious of her attire. It was a bright white dress, much brighter than any other article of clothing on the street. She started fumbling with the hem of her dress and scrunched herself up hoping to make herself appear smaller.

Mikan was sitting, staring at a piece of paper that was caught underneath a rock. It rustled in the wind. She had been waiting for at least fifteen minutes. She was getting tired. Someone suddenly plopped down next to her on the bench. Startled she looked over at him. He had a curious look on his face.

"You're not from around here," he stated.

Mikan forgetting Sumire's warning not to talk to anyone replied, "No. I'm not."

"What brings you to this side of town, miss..?" he probed.

"Mikan Sakura," she said. "I'm looking for someone."

"Mikan, eh? I'm Hayate. You know, maybe I know who you're looking for. I happen to know a lot of people." His arms stretched out as to prove his point.

Mikan brightened at this. Koko and Sumire did seem to abandon her. "Yeah! Maybe. His name is Natsume."

At this Hayate stared incredulously at her. "Natsume?" Now he smiled. "I know him!"

"Wow, really?"

"Yes. Here," he said standing up, "I'll take you to someone who knows where he is."

"Oh my gosh! Thank you so much Hayate."

"Anything for you my sweet angel." Suddenly he grabbed her by the arm and Mikan felt a dramatic shift in the air. He yanked the door to the pub open and pushed her in.

Mikan looked around the pub. It was dark inside. It took some time for her eyes to adjust but she could make out some groups of angels. Girls and boys littered the tables, some had their wings out and they were letting the boys touch their wings. Mikan wondered what kind of place this was. Letting others touch your wings so freely was unheard of by the temple, but these folks were doing it so carelessly. She wondered what they were feeling, and exchanging between each other. What drove these angels to be so careless with their feelings and projections?

"Hey Persona!" Hayate called commanding Mikan's attention.

Mikan watched as he dragged her over to the bar where Sumire and Koko were sitting. The person from earlier, Persona, was across from them leaning on his elbows.

Sumire sneered at Mikan. "I told you not to talk to anyone."

Persona straightened from his position. "What is it Hayate?"

He pushed Mikan forward so she stumbled into the bar. "This little girl is looking for Natsume."

Persona's eyes flashed with interest. "Oh." The tone in his voice was playful. "What a cute little kitten," he directed at Mikan.

Mikan sensed something fowl from this guy. He did not seem like a good angel. He looked dangerous with his hard eyes that stared coldly, and his long bony fingers that were now moving to cup her face.

Mikan recoiled at his touch. She felt him trace her jawline and she shivered.

"Natsume, huh?" he asked her. "What do you want with my black cat?"

Mikan stared. What was it with this guy and calling people names related to cats?

"I just need to see him," she said plainly.

"He's a little busy," Persona explained. "You know I could use a cute little kitten like you around here," he added.

"No thanks." Mikan was getting annoyed now. She glanced at Sumire and Koko, they sat transfixed in their seats. Koko was nervously picking at his pants.

"How about I determine that for you?" Persona said. "Show me your wings," he demanded.

Mikan stood up straighter now and stared him in his lifeless eyes. "No."

Hearing her rejection, Hayate grabbed her again. "Hey girl," he said forcefully. "Persona asked you to do something so you do it."

Mikan wanted to leave and so she told the truth hoping it would make him lose his interest.

"I don't have wings," she said flatly.

She heard Koko groan and mutter a curse word. Hayate stared at her with disgust, and Sumire hid her face in her hands. Persona was the only one who seemed delighted by her words.

He started laughing. It was a long laugh, his lips didn't even curl. "You," he started, "You are the little kitten from the courtyard? You let Yuu escape."

"What?" she croaked. Yuu? Mikan blinked. Was this guy involved with that situation? Was he some sort of boss that made others do his bidding?

He tutted at her. "You see. Yuu owed me, and you let him get away. So now, you owe me."

"I don't owe you anything!" Mikan snapped back at him. She grabbed Sumire and Koko by their wrists. "And neither do they. We're leaving." She pulled them off their stools.

She saw it now. Amusement danced in his eyes. He was actually enjoying this. Hayate moved to stop them but Persona told him to stop.

"Mikan," Persona called after them, "You can try to fly, but you don't have wings, so you won't get very far." It was a warning. "I will find you, after all, you do owe me."

Mikan stopped. She turned sharply curled her hand into a fist and swung. She hit him square in the jaw. He stumbled slightly. His eyes were malicious now. Mikan realizing what she had done quickly rushed out the door before he could retaliate.

She ran. Koko and Sumire followed.


	8. In the Dark

**Chapter Eight: In the Dark**

Mikan was in the library absentmindedly flipping through a ledger Hotaru had handed her. Hotaru had her own stack next to her, much larger than Mikan's. Yoichi was sitting on Ruka's lap drawing animals from the animal book Ruka had open. They had been at the temple a lot lately, still sleeping and getting food from them.

"What am I looking for again?" Mikan asked.

Hotaru flashed her an annoyed look. "Birth records and the date of any suspicious attacks or natural disasters."

Mikan looked at the papers in front of her. The most interesting event that occurred listed on this paper was the birth of an angel that had the ability to turn things into stone. Boring.

Mikan's mind drifted to yesterday and her encounter with Persona. She had unsuccessfully found Natsume, and seemed to cause more trouble. Sumire and Koko were speechless when they left her. Mikan felt slightly victorious though. She had punched him in the face and it felt good.

"Hey Ruka," she said looking up from her papers.

He looked up from his book on animals and smiled at her. "Yeah?"

"Who exactly is Persona?" she asked.

His smile fell from his face. "Where did you hear that name?" he asked.

"Ah, uh. Koko said it the other day," she lied.

"Koko did?" he asked.

"Yeah. He uh, doesn't seem like a nice person, and you guys work for him or something?"

"It's complicated," he said, trying to dismiss the subject.

"Then un-complicate it please," Mikan said.

He looked down, and hesitated like he didn't want to share. "It started with me," he began, "Persona seeks certain types of people out. He just develops a strange fascination with them and usually they end up missing or seriously indebted to him. One day he sought me out and I became trapped in the web of lies that is Persona."

"What did he want with you?" Mikan asked.

"I don't really know." He looked sad now. "It was a strange fascination at first. He would have me do random things, fly to certain places for no reason, but the things he requested after a while started to change and I couldn't do them after a while."

Hotaru shifted her attention from her papers now and watched him.

"What kind of things?" she asked.

He looked down at Yoichi. "Bad things," he explained. "First it was finding people, but then hurting them if they didn't go to him."

"Like with Yuu?" Mikan asked.

"Kind of," he said.

"I did as I was told at first, but it really ate away at me. I tried to hide it, but Natsume found out. He found me one night in the middle of the street, I had tried to keep it from him for so long, but I was just beaten for disobeying Persona."

Mikan gasped.

"Yes," his eyes were closed now, "Natsume was furious with me for keeping things from him. I was only trying to protect him for once since he was always protecting me."

"Protecting you?" Mikan asked, "How?"

"We grew up together," he explained. "He lost his parents at a young age. His dad made a deal with someone, but it turned ugly. So it was just him and Aoi, his sister. He was given so much responsibility and yet he still looked out for me, and fought my battles for me."

Mikan blinked as she tried to comprehend all this new information about Natsume, the always guarded, black angel. He was parentless too, and had a sister apparently. That might explain his cold exterior.

"That night," Ruka went on, "he went to Persona. In exchange for his service, I was to be left alone."

"What?" Mikan asked.

"I felt awful, so bad. I didn't want him to get involved. I suddenly made everything harder for him. I regret that every day."

"Why doesn't he run or fight back?"

"He can't. Persona, he took Aoi, as leverage. That way Natsume wouldn't fight back, and would do anything he asked."

"That's awful!"

"Persona will never let him go now. Natsume is the greatest thing to ever happen to him. An angel already feared by the color of his wings, who can control fire. He's tangled up too much. He's trapped."

"There's got to be something," Mikan said suddenly.

"I don't know, but he's been leaving a lot, lately when he's not out doing something for Persona. To go look for her I think, and so I watch Yoichi." Yoichi stopped coloring when he heard his name. He silently poked Ruka in the cheek.

"I think he knows something," he went on, "about these attacks."

"What do you think it is?" Hotaru questioned.

"I'm not sure, but he's always the first one out there. Looking for something."

"That sounds dangerous," Mikan said. "He goes alone?"

"Always, he never lets me go. Always the one protecting."

Mikan huffed. "Well who's going to protect him when he needs it?"

"Mikan," Ruka stared at her, "I've tried. He's pretty stubborn."

"Yeah? Well so am I," she said leaning back in her chair.

Hotaru glanced at her, "And what exactly are you going to do for him?"

"I can stand up for myself. I'll have you know, I punched someone yesterday."

Hotaru and Ruka both gawked at her.

"You punched someone?" Ruka asked.

Hoatru probed for more information. "In the temple?"

"Ah well, no."

"Outside then?" Hotaru took Mikan's silence as a yes. "Mikan you idiot. Did you go outside?"

"It was really quick," she lied.

"Quick enough to punch someone?" Hotaru frowned.

"Yeah, well—" Mikan felt her chair yank back from the table and she wobbled in her seat before someone grasped her by her arm and pulled her up. Her shocked brown eyes met crimson and she squeaked.

"Are you crazy?" he barked at her.

Ruka stood, "Natsume!" Yoichi peeked over the table's edge.

"I uh, ow." Mikan winced at his grip on her arm.

"You punched Persona in the face?" he barked again. If eyes could kill, his would have.

"You met Persona?" Ruka asked aghast.

"Yeah," Mikan replied nervously.

"He's livid!" Natsume shouted.

"So what?" Mikan snapped back. "I can take him. I already got in one good hit."

"You're going to take him? You told him you don't even have wings," he roared at her. "How are you going to take him when he has you 1,000 feet in the air ready to drop you?"

"What?" she croaked.

"Mikan, you idiot," her best friend told her. "What did you do?"

"I stood up for myself! And Koko, and Sumire!"

Natsume released his grip on her arm. "You made matters worse. Koko and Sumire are in hiding now."

"I'm sorry," she pleaded, "I didn't know it would cause more problems. Koko and Sumire seemed terrified of him. I thought I was helping. I didn't know he was such a bad guy. I didn't know he had your sister!"

His eyes flashed to Ruka. "You told her?" He ran one of his hands through his hair. "Never mind that," he directed to him. "What were you even doing there?" he asked Mikan.

She gulped and looked at him more closely. He looked tired, like he had been out all night. "I was looking for you."

Mikan noticed as his expression changed from anger to shock, just briefly. The fire that lit his eyes seemed to be extinguished. He hesitated before replying, staring into her eyes he said, "Stop looking."

Mikan stood there, open mouthed as he turned to leave. "Hold on!" she called chasing after him.

She found him briskly walking through the hall. She ran to catch him and reached for his arm.

"You can't just leave a conversation like that," she cried.

He rounded on her and suddenly shoved her into a nearby room. She tripped down some stairs before landing on her belly. The room was completely dark.

"What the hell was that for?" she yelled.

He quickly muffled her yells with his hand and Mikan felt herself freeze against his hand.

"One of Persona's men, he's probably here looking for you," he explained.

She shoved his hand from her mouth. "Fine, but next time just say so before shoving me into a dark room. Where are we anyway? I can't see anything!"

He conjured a flame in his hand and held it up. It illuminated the room. It was full of tombs. Mikan groaned.

"Oh God, no. You shoved us in here, and closed the door?"

He extinguished the flame and left them in the dark.

"No," Mikan cried. "Don't do that!" She banged on the door. "This door doesn't open from this side. Perfect."

"Perfect," he echoed, glumly. "Who the hell made a door like that?"

"No one," she said, "It's just broken. No one goes in here anyway. It's creepy. Can you do that fire thing again?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No." She heard him slide down onto the floor.

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"Waiting for someone to open it, obviously."

"Oh. Do you want to at least light up the place with your—err fire?"

"No."

"Why not?" she cried.

"What? Are you afraid of the dark now?"

She immediately thought back to the first time he had asked her this question. The day in the courtyard when they met.

"No, I just don't like this place. It's creepy." She navigated to where she thought he was and slumped down next to him, pulling her knees to her chest.

"They're just tombs."

"Are you saying you don't mind being trapped down here?"

"I could use better company," he mumbled.

"What?" Mikan moved to shove him but he pushed her off.

"Stop yelling, my head hurts."

She heard him exhale. "Oh, sorry," she said quieter now.

They sat in silence for a while. Her eyes began to adjust slightly, but it was still difficult to see. She could only make out his outline. He was leaning against the wall, his head back. His eyes looked closed. She decided to inch closer to him.

"What are you doing?" he asked her.

"It's cold," she lied, inching closer. They were almost shoulder to shoulder now.

He didn't reply. She could feel the heat from his body. The close proximity was only to ease her nerves of being locked in the tombs. Who knew what kind of bugs or creepy crawlers called this place their home.

After more silence she spoke again, barely a whisper. "Hey Natsume."

He didn't reply.

"Natsume," she tried again.

She watched his face. In the dim light his eyes reflected what little light they had. She took it as permission to speak.

She took a deep breath before speaking. "I'm sorry I asked Ruka about you," she said, "I should have just asked you."

She waited for a response but he never gave one.

"I'm sorry about everything and judging you. You're not a bad person. I understand that now. You protect people."

Mikan watched him as he stared at the ceiling. His eyes never moved.

"Well," she smiled to herself, "You don't have to protect me anymore, okay?" She turned her body to him now. "And even though I don't have wings, I'll find some way to protect you now."

He lowered his head now so his hair blocked his eyes.

"You're not alone, you know? I'll be there, if you ever need it."

"I don't need protecting."

"There's nothing you can say, or do to make me change my mind."

"Tch."

"Even if you don't want me there, I will be there."

He didn't speak for several minutes. Mikan waited, but he never said anything more. He was done. She was twirling her finger in the dirt on the ground when she noticed him move his arm. Slowly, he opened his hand and created a new flame. She watched as it grew, it pulsed almost like it had a heart of its own and he controlled its beats.

Mikan watched in awe as he placed it on the ground away from them. It stayed lit on its own. The flame continued pulsing and dancing, illuminating and shrouding them in light.

She watched the flames dance until her eyelids began to get heavy and sleep overtook her.


	9. Pulsing Fingers

**Chapter Nine: Pulsing Fingers**

"What the hell?"

The ground was hard and uncomfortable as Mikan rolled over to look up at the voice's owner.

Misaki walked down the three steps and surveyed the scene in front of her. Mikan was rolled up on the ground and Natsume was still leaning against the wall, breathing hard. The fire was now just a small flame, barely alive.

"Misaki!" Mikan screamed. "We're saved!" She ran to hug her friend.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"We got trapped down here, the door's busted remember?"

"Oh right, we should probably have someone fix that."

Mikan turned to look at Natsume. He was still sleeping. She frowned.

"Hey," she called. "Wake up now. We're free."

She walked over to him and crouched down to shake him. His whole body was hot. Mikan touched his forehead, it was burning.

"Misaki! Come quick, he's got a fever!"

"Ah shoot!" she said walking towards them. "Get his other side."

The two girls lifted him as best they could. Natsume groaned in the process.

"Come on," Mikan urged.

"Let's take him to the infirmary," Misaki suggested.

"No," Mikan said, "my room."

"What? All right whatever," she said watching Mikan's face.

They met Tsubasa halfway there and made him carry Natsume the rest of the way.

"Go find Hotaru and Ruka," she told Misaki.

"Tsubasa," Mikan said, "put him on the bed."

He did as he was told, but more forcefully than Mikan had hoped. Natsume groaned slightly when Tsubasa dropped him on her bed.

"He's burning up, Mikan," he said, "Now what?"

She bounced on the heels of her feet for a moment, trying to find an answer. "Let's cool him off, I guess."

"I'll get some cold towels," he said. "You remove his clothes."

Mikan moved then halted. "Wait clothes? You want me to remove them?"

"Yes," he said impatiently, "he's like drenched in sweat."

"Okay, okay!" she said reaching for his shirt. She was suddenly aware of everything as she gripped his shirt. Her pulse thrummed in her fingertips. He was restless, his breathing hard. His eyes were shut but moved rapidly beneath their lids.

She maneuvered his shirt off his body and gasped. His skin was toned, defined and hard, her eyes were momentarily distracted but she gasped not because of his glistening skin but the purpling bruise below his rib cage. Her hand instinctively moved so her fingers could trace it.

A groan broke her trance and her hand snapped back to her side.

Mikan heard footsteps approach as Ruka and Hotaru entered her room.

"Natsume!" Ruka called out, running to his side.

Hotaru glanced at the shirt in Mikan's hand. "What are you doing?"

Mikan hastily threw it to the ground. "Nothing."

Natsume stirred before his eyelids fluttered open. "Ru-ka," he muttered.

Ruka quickly went to his side, his eyes traveled down to the exposed bruise, before meeting his eyes.

"He has a fever," Mikan explained.

"He's exhausted," Ruka said. "Persona probably had him out all night doing jobs for him, using his ability." He spat now, "How selfish. It drains his energy every time."

"His energy?" Hotaru asked.

"The fire," he explained. "When he uses it, it takes a lot out of him."

Mikan thought to the night before, when he used his fire to keep them, or her warm. Once again, he protected her over himself. How foolish.

"I got the towels!" Tsubasa called, running into the room. "Here," he said handing them out.

"Ru-ka," Natsume breathed again.

"Natsume," he said. "What's wrong?"

He turned towards Ruka slowly. "Reo," he breathed again, "in the temple."

Ruka's eyes widened.

"Reo? Who's Reo?" Mikan asked.

"He's not good," Ruka said. "He's one of Persona's men. He has the ability to persuade others."

"He's inside?" Mikan asked.

"If he is, I'll go take care of him."

"I'll go with you," Hotaru said.

Ruka momentarily shocked by her decision accepted her help.

"Mikan, you stay here," her best friend told her. "Watch that idiot," she motioned to Natsume.

"Ah, right."

"I'll send Yoichi up to keep you company," Ruka offered.

So that's how Mikan found herself, coloring pictures with Yoichi on the floor, while Natsume slept the day away in her bed. Things sure had been strange lately. She glanced at the sleeping boy on her bed. He definitely seemed less dangerous now, and almost delicate sleeping peacefully.

Yoichi put his crayon down and pointed to his mouth. "I'm hungry," he said.

"All right," Mikan smiled at him. "Let's go find some food."

She found Misaki in the kitchen eating her own food. "Hey," she called to her.

"Yo Mikan!"

"What's for lunch?" Mikan asked.

Misaki stuck her sandwich in her mouth, "whaepferyofmakph."

"Right," Mikan laughed. "Come here Yoichi. What'd you like?"

He pointed around the kitchen at various items, strawberries, bread, milk, and some cheese.

"Can I make it myself?" he asked quietly to Mikan.

Mikan crouched down and smiled at him. "Sure, kiddo." She gathered up all the ingredients he pointed at and a few of her own choosing and assembled them on the counter. "Have at it," she told him.

"So," Misaki began, "you know you have a very dangerous, yet attractive boy sleeping in your bed right now?"

Mikan turned to hide the blush creeping up her neck. "So? He was sick that's all."

"Mikan," Misaki said. "Sick or not, Tsubasa and I have never slept in each other's beds."

"Geez Misaki!" Mikan rounded on her. "Not in front of the kid," she motioned to Yoichi who was making a very interesting looking sandwich with strawberries and cheese.

"Look," she went on, "I couldn't just bring the feared black angel into the infirmary. It'd be suspicious and cause problems."

"He's dangerous," Misaki said.

"No, he's just troubled," Mikan countered. "Trust me, please," she begged.

"I don't want you to get hurt, that's all."

"I'm stronger than I look. You know that. Remember that time I tackled Tsubasa?"

She laughed now, "Yeah. How could I forget? He totally didn't expect it!"

"I want to help people," she said, "like everyone else. I can't do that cooped up in this place though."

She rose from her seat. "Okay, Mikan. I trust you."

"Thank you," she smiled.

"You be good though, and watch that boy," she said pointing to Yoichi.

Mikan turned and gasped. Yoichi had made a colossal mess of a sandwich. "All right, that's enough lunch."

She gathered some strawberries into a bowl and waited as Yoichi finished his gourmet meal. They made their way to the main hallway where she noticed Ruka and Hotaru just now returning.

"Hotaru!" she called, running to hug her. "You're back."

"We took care of Reo," she said. "He won't come back here again."

"That's great," Mikan said, not even knowing what kind of problem he would have been.

"Ah Mikan," Ruka started.

Smiling she turned to him, "Yes?"

"Persona will be out of town for a while—"

"—That's great!" Mikan interrupted.

"Yes," he started, "but do you mind if we have Natsume hide out here for a while?"

Mikan blinked. "Sure," she said, "that's fine."

"Now that that's settled and we're harboring a dangerous individual," Hotaru said. "I have to go to the market real fast. I'll be back." With that she materialized her wings, in the process slapping Ruka in the face with them.

He stumbled slightly.

"Oh," was all Hotaru said.

"I'll take Yoichi for a while, let you have a break," he told Mikan.

"Thanks," she replied.

"Oh Mikan!" Anna said as she approached her.

"Hey Anna, what's up?"

She cocked her head, slightly, "I thought you were in the shower. I went by your room just now."

The shower? "Ah!" Mikan exclaimed, "Sorry Anna. I gotta go!"

She rushed up the stairs popping some strawberries in her mouth as she threw open the door to her room. First, she noticed the empty bed, then the curtains pushed open a little.

"Shit!" she exclaimed. He must have left through the balcony.

She turned sharply and almost lost her footing. "Oh!" she exclaimed. There he was standing by her bookshelf. Mikan stared dumbly at him. He stood there coolly, in only a towel covering his lower half. Droplets of water glistened on his body.

Mikan felt herself blush, and she watched as he smirked at her.

"Where are my clothes?" he asked her.

"Um," she replied biting her lip. She moved her head looking for his clothes, but couldn't find them. Her eyes fell on a pile of clothes on her dresser; Tsubasa must have put them there sometime. "You can wear these," she said handing them to him.

She watched as he made his way towards her. His hands reached for the clothes and touched the fabric, feeling it. It was all white. Mikan once again felt the heat off his body from their new proximity.

"Here!" she said, shoving the clothes into his chest.

His hand brushed hers slightly, and Mikan felt her one finger pulse on her hand. It happened whenever she got nervous, or butterflies. They would always travel down to her finger and left a pulsing sensation.

He started fumbling with the towel around his waist when Mikan jumped.

"Hey!" she shouted. "Wait."

He stared back at her. The towel was dangerously low on his hips.

"I'll leave the room." Hastily, she scurried out the door closing it behind her.

She leaned against the door as her heart hammered throughout her whole body. He was just going to change right in front of her. Geez. She took some deep breaths, and waited. She grew impatient after ten minutes. How long did it take to change anyway?

She opened her door and glanced around. The room was empty.

"What?" she asked disbelievingly.

She watched as her curtains fluttered in the wind, they had been pushed open more. He must have left through the balcony. She ran to the balcony to see if she could find any trace of him. Finding none she silently cursed to herself and ran out of her room.

She would find Ruka first and explain to him how he ran away. God, he had probably ran back to Persona or something.

"Ruka!" she called running through the hallway.

"Hey have you seen a blonde haired guy named Ruka?" she asked someone carrying some linen.

She ran through the temple looking for him calling out his name. She finally found him in the library smiling at something.

"Ruka!" she hollered running up to him.

He turned to her taking in her disheveled look.

"Ruka," she panted, "Natsume. He's gone! He was like naked, and now he's gone. I think he ran away."

Ruka stared at her for a moment before he started laughing.

"What?" Mikan breathed.

He turned to someone behind him. "Naked?" he asked.

Mikan looked up, and saw him leaning against a bookshelf, his arms crossed. His face clearly showed amusement.

Mikan gawked at him. He looked so different dressed in white. His shirt wasn't buttoned all the way and she could see his chest. It was an effortless beauty. She felt her cheeks warm. He was so angelic at that moment, so inviting looking. There was almost no trace of the black angel left, except for the flames that danced in his eyes.

"I had a towel on," he told Ruka, "then she practically attacked me with these clothes."

"I didn't attack you!" she yelled back.

"Why are you always shouting?" Natsume asked her.

She faltered.

Ruka laughed some more. "Thanks Mikan, for looking after him."

"Mikan?" Someone called. "Is that you making all that noise?" It was Tsubaba.

"Sorry, Tsubaba," she said as he sauntered up to them.

"Yo," he said. He leaned in toward Natsume and looked him up and down. "You better be nice to my Mikan, she took care of you, you know?"

"This stupid girl?" Natsume asked him.

"Hey!" Mikan said, moving to hit him, he deflected it easily.

"Hey," Tsubasa said to him, "You better watch it. She's still innocent and clueless. I'll hurt you if you do anything to her."

"Tsubasa!" Mikan called, embarrassed.

Natsume smirked. "I'm not interested," he said.

"Come on," Tsubasa said, grabbing her hand. "You're supposed to be in the kitchen making food for the soldiers."


	10. Back to Normal

**Chapter Ten: Back to Normal**

The attacks were less frequent now, and summer was ending. People started picking up their normal day to day routines. Mikan's grandpa was still in the infirmary resting, so she had more responsibility around the temple. He always had her constantly running off to do something, but she knew it was just to keep her busy and out of trouble.

Things were calm though. Koko and Sumire had even come out of hiding and were residing in the temple with some others that had lost their homes. Mikan hardly saw anyone though on the count of her busy schedule. Making breakfast, cleaning the linen, watching after children while their parents went out, helping out with the dinner rush, and sitting in on important meetings for her grandpa. By the end of the day she went straight to bed and collapsed on her bed.

For a while she had sought her friends, but always found them busy themselves. Hotaru was busy putting something together, Ruka went out a lot, Anna and Nonoko had their own duties, same with Tsubasa and Misaki, and Natsume. Well, she had no idea where he ran off to every day, but Ruka promised he was still hiding out within the temple or near it at least.

So Mikan was happy when she walked into the kitchen and saw Anna and Nonoko already there. She called out to them.

"Mikan!" they replied in unison.

"Ah," Mikan said, "I'm so happy to see you guys. It's been so busy."

"I agree," Anna said. "Lots of us have a break around lunch, we should have a picnic before summer is officially gone."

Nonoko perked up, "That sounds like a great idea!"

"Yes," Mikan agreed, "I haven't seen everyone in forever."

"Yes, let's do it," Anna said.

"Oh," Nonoko said, "Should we invite our new friends Sumire and Koko?"

"Yes!" Anna jumped.

"And Ruka, and Yoichi." Mikan added hesitantly, "And Natsume."

"Natsume?" Anna asked, "The angel with the black wings? Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Mikan waved her doubts away. "He'll be fine. He's not all bad."

"All right then," Nonoko said. "I'll go tell everyone if you two get all the food set up."

They split up their duties and watched as Nonoko went to go spread the word.

"So Mikan," Anna gushed. "You have to tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"Do you like that guy Ruka?"

"Eh, what?"

"I always see you two smiling at each other." She went to grab Mikan's hands. "It's so cute."

"We're just friends," Mikan swore.

"Really?" Anna edged on, "Even though he caught you all romantic like from that drop?"

"I swear," Mikan said, "besides Hotaru has some weird fascination with him." She also didn't have the heart to tell her Ruka was technically involved in the whole dropping from the sky incident as well.

Anna thought for a moment. "They are always together, aren't they? You know, actually, I think Hotaru tried to sell me a photo of him. It was really tempting but I didn't go for it."

That definitely sounded like Hotaru. Mikan would have to talk to her about that, she was probably blackmailing Ruka or something.

"Anyone else then, Mikan?" Anna asked.

Mikan thought for a moment. Things had been so crazy lately that she didn't have time to fawn over boys like Anna liked to. "Hmm," she thought. She racked her brain for potentials but only could think of one dressed in all black. "Nope," she replied quickly to Anna.

"Hmm," Anna mused. "You know, I think I've been fancying Sakurano lately. He's a soldier now, and so much more handsome since he left!"

"You should ask him to our picnic," Mikan suggested.

Her ears reddened at the thought. "Oh heavens no, I couldn't."

She waved to someone walking into the kitchen and Mikan turned to see all her friends that were invited to their picnic. She smiled brightly at everyone. Two were still missing, though.

"What's on the menu?" Hotaru asked, "Any crab?"

"No, picky," Mikan called her. "Just some simple sandwiches," she said holding them up.

"Hey yo!" Tsubasa called, "I brought a ball, in case we wanted to play some air ball," he said, "Or just kick it on the ground," he added looking at Mikan, apologetically.

"Let's go then," Mikan said. "Hey, Ruka? Where are Yoichi and Natsume?"

He smiled at her, "We'll have to take the picnic to them, if that's all right. They're in the courtyard."

"I love the courtyard," Mikan piped. "There are Sakura trees there."

"Great," Nonoko said, cheerfully. "Let's roll out."

They found them lounging under a Sakura tree, avoiding the last summer sun's bright rays. The wind was crisp and fall crept in through the breeze. Mikan waved enthusiastically at them.

"Yoichi!" she called.

The young boy looked up at her call, his face remained expressionless, just like the angel next to him.

They set up their picnic just under the tree and soaked in the last summer day. Fall would be short, and then winter would bring snow. Mikan loved the snow, especially the first full blanket of snow that coated the grounds. The way it glistened and blinded you when the sun shone bright. That's how she imagined her wings would look if she ever got any. Bright and blinding, like the first full snow.

They ate their sandwiches cheerfully and talked among themselves. Everyone was in a good mood, and things finally seemed to calm down.

"Yoichi's been really picky with his food lately," Ruka told Natsume.

"Yoichi," Natsume told him, "Eat your food."

"He keeps going on about this weird strawberry and cheese sandwich he had." Ruka said.

Koko gagged. "That sounds disgusting."

"Who the hell gave him that?" Natsume asked.

Silently Yoichi pointed at Mikan, and she felt herself stiffen. Yoichi, that traitor.

"What the hell are you feeding him?" Natsume asked her, glaring.

"Nothing," Mikan retaliated, "He made it himself."

He stared back at her coldly. "You let a four year old make his own lunch?"

"He was perfectly capable," Mikan said.

"So much for that womanly touch he needs," he said.

She stuck her tongue out at him in response.

It felt good to be with her friends and to be outside. There had not been an attack in a couple weeks and things were looking up. Mikan was excited to welcome the fall season with all her new and old friends.

"Koko," she called to him. "If you want I can hook you up with a job in the temple. It will be so fun working with you here."

Koko shifted in his seat. "Ah sorry Mikan," he said, "I'm actually moving out soon."

"Eh?" Mikan exclaimed, "What?"

"Yeah," he smiled sheepishly at her, "Sumire offered me her place."

"Oh wow! That's amazing," Mikan said. "I'll have to visit some time then."

Sumire and Koko exchanged a quick glance, Mikan wasn't sure if it was an actual glance or a trick of the sun.

"Sorry, but," Koko paused, "we'll be in and out a lot doing things for uh, our new job."

Mikan watched as Koko was unusually fumbling with his words and averting his eyes. She felt like he was leaving out some important information regarding his new lodgings. She watched him carefully trying to discern what it was.

He avoided her gaze by reaching for another sandwich and stuffing it whole into his mouth.

"Actually," Ruka began, "we will all be leaving soon." He smiled weakly at her.

Mikan gasped. "What? No way! Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"They're telling you now, dummy," Hotaru said.

"Ah right," Mikan said. "Yoichi too then and..." She looked to Natsume. He simply stared out at the fountain in the courtyard. Mikan was reminded of when she first met all of them.

"Things have calmed down," Ruka explained, "and we need to get back to our normal lives."

Normal lives. Mikan repeated in her head. It seemed harsh. She was not normal, she knew that. Their being there in the temple was not normal. Even in such a short time she felt like she had really gotten to know everyone. It felt normal to her.

Ruka realizing Mikan's somberness spoke. "I will visit you," he said, "we will. We are friends after all."

"That will be lovely," Mikan said, the smile returning to her face.

"Besides Mikan," Misaki said, "We have to take care of the temple now for your gramps."

"Yeah, yeah," Tsubasa added. "We have a ton of new responsibilities."

Mikan groaned. "Yay responsibilities."

"It'll be fun Mikan!" Anna chirped.

Still Mikan was a little sad about her new friends leaving. She understood though. Unlike her, they have lives outside of the temple, thrilling, adventurous and complicated lives. Lives that seem so far away from her own.

"I am happy then," Mikan said, "that you guys can go home."

"Let's enjoy this while we can then," Koko said, emerging from his stupor. He reached for the ball by Tsubasa. "How about some air ball?"

"Oh! That sounds fun," Nonoko said.

Everyone seemed excited to play air ball, even Yoichi. Mikan simply smiled at her friends happily chatting about a game.

"Let's do it!" Tsubasa said jumping up, and materializing his wings.

"Oh yeah," Misaki said. "I've been waiting all summer to kick your butt."

Misaki's wings popped out and she got in Tsubasa's face. He stared back at her for a moment before his gaze fell on Mikan's laughing face.

"Oh," he said quietly. "Mikan." Everyone quieted at once and Mikan watched as their faces became sad with realization. She could not play. She never could.

"No, no!" Mikan said through laughs. "I know. You guys have fun. I'll be okay. I'll clean up."

"In that case," Tsubasa shouted. "You!" He pointed to Natsume. "Prepare to have your ass handed to you."

Natsume scoffed at him. "Not even in your dreams."

"Let's go then, tough guy."

"You really want me to go flashing my wings around here?"

Tsubasa's cocky grin fell off his face. Natsume was right though. If he was caught fooling around in the courtyard with his black wings it would cause trouble and apprehension.

Ruka's eyes widened. "I'll sit with you then." Typical Ruka, not wanting his friend to feel left out.

"No," Natsume said. "Yoichi wants to play anyway, so help him."

Yoichi indeed wanted to play. He was currently trying to snatch the ball from Koko who held the ball high above his head, teasing him.

Ruka hesitated and mulled it over in his head before smiling at his friend and turning towards the others. Mikan watched as everyone took off. Their wings were vibrant in the sun's rays. She stared longingly at them, passing the ball back and forth.

She looked towards Natsume and caught him staring at her. She noticed his arms were crossed and he leaned against the tree's trunk. She felt fully aware of herself as he stared. She glanced away and busied herself with the mess they had made.

She felt awkward all of a sudden, being alone with him. She was unsure of what to say. He must feel isolated, and left out not being able to play a game simply because of the color of his wings. She wanted to say something to him, to tell him that it was okay, that his wings should not be feared. He was just different, like her. Why did the color matter anyway?

"Natsume," she said quietly. She turned towards him now; he was no longer looking at her though. He stared across the courtyard. His gaze was fiery. She followed it to the other side and she nearly dropped what she was holding. Her skin paled, and she felt clammy.

Delicately hiding in the shade of the trees, he stood, tall and steady. Mikan felt his eyes; they were staring solely at her. He was back from wherever he had gone. She gulped.

Natsume stood silently and walked towards him without a word. Time slowed when he passed directly by her. His face was emotionless, and poised. She wanted to stop him, but she was frozen. The air around her was heavy with buzzing. He mind was doing the buzzing, halting her.

Persona placed his hand on Natsume's shoulder when he came near, his gaze finally shifted and Mikan was released from her invisible prison. She watched as they disappeared together. Things were definitely returning back to how they used to be.


	11. Intriguing Feelings

**Chapter Eleven: Intriguing Feelings**

Mikan had adjusted miserably to her friends returning to their old lives. Time moved slowly within the temple with every passing minute, every new bed sheet, every new dinner, and every new speck of dust on the floor that she had to clean.

She constantly found herself staring out the windows, wondering what they were up to, wondering if they were flying, having fun, being free, and weightless. There had only been one attack since her friends had left three weeks ago. Only one angel was taken this time.

The leaves on the trees were changing from green to a mix of vibrant colors. Fall. Today she was tasked with sweeping the floor of the library. She didn't mind this chore, because often she would finish quickly enough to spend the rest of the day reading in a tiny alcove hidden behind the books no one touched anymore, silently collecting dust.

So she swayed across the floor, moving the broom in sync with her movements. Back and forth. Right to left. Forward and Backward. So the rhythm went. She quickly went to stash the broom when she was done and wiped her brow.

Her fingers traced the wall as she climbed to her secret alcove. The book she had read many times over and over again was tucked under her arm, _The History of Angels._ She felt as if she knew it page for page, but still she went back to it hoping to find an answer, hoping one would magically appear since the last time she had read it.

She nestled herself in the window of her tiny alcove. The sun shone through and warmed her porcelain skin. She opened the book and read the first sentence. _Angels are benevolent celestial beings that are graced with feathered wings in varying shades of white. Angels are pure—._

Mikan stopped reading. She had read the beginning of this book many times but now it all felt like lies. Angels are benevolent, lie number one. There was a time when she had thought that but lately no. She had met someone terrible, who used others to do his own bidding. How could he be labeled as benevolent? He certainly wasn't pure either, lie number two. The whole pub was rotten with indecent angels.

Lie number three: graced with white wings. This angered her the most. The more she thought about the color of wings the more she determined it didn't matter. Color was more of a status symbol than anything else. Those with the whitest wings were deemed special; they were constantly showered with affection and praise. But what of Natsume then? From what Mikan had learned, he was no different. He was special in his own way. He with is black wings, his hasty attitude, his stubbornness to protect others over himself.

Frustrated, Mikan hurled the book down the stairs. Nothing made sense anymore. The perfect image of Cloud Alice was nothing but a lie. There were corrupt angels, damaged and broken ones, and ones with larger troubles than her own. She was feeling selfish for wanting wings so badly. Why did she deserve them when they were a curse to another? She huffed and buried her hands in her hair.

"I thought I heard cries of frustration."

Mikan's head shot up and eyed Tsubasa, he was slowly making his way up the stairs towards her. "What do you want?"

"Hey, now," he said. "What's got you in a tizzy?" He reached down and picked up the book she had thrown earlier. He recognized it immediately. "This again?" he asked.

"I don't know what's true anymore." She slumped over.

"Mikan," he said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "What you see with your eyes is the truth."

Her eyes flashed to his. "When did you suddenly get so deep?"

"Overnight, I think."

She smiled up at him. He always had that effect on others, making them laugh and smile.

"What are you doing here Tsubasa?" she asked.

"Oh right," he grinned at her. "Want to play a prank on Misaki with me?"

Mikan laughed. Tsubasa loved playing pranks on her. "What is it this time?"

"The best prank ever," he said emphasizing his statement with a finger point.

"You said that the last time." Mikan waved him off.

"Yes, but this time it really is." He put his arm around her shoulders and led them down the staircase. "You see. I am going to have a really cute soldier guy ask her out on a date."

Mikan eyed him. "How is that a prank?"

"Just wait," he said. "So she's going to get all excited and dolled up and then when she goes to meet him," he paused for buildup, "he won't be there! I'll be there instead."

"What?" Mikan asked in disbelief.

"Haha, isn't it great? She'll be so angry and annoyed!"

"That's not a prank," Mikan criticized. "That's evil."

"No," he waved her off. "It'll be hilarious! You have to help of course. Get her all excited and dolled up."

"You know," Mikan started, "if you really want to see her dressed up and all that. Why don't you just ask her on a date?"

He stopped their movement and leaned in close to her face. "Mikan. It's not like that."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." He flashed her a smile.

"I don't believe you."

"I swear. Now wait here. I already had someone ask her, and she'll probably be looking for you to tell you the good news." He jumped excitedly now. "I'll go find her and tell her where you are."

"Wait, what? You already set this all up and then told me?"

"I knew you'd say yes!"

She narrowed her eyes. "I didn't though."

He winked at her. "Yes, you did," he said leaving her in the main entryway.

Misaki was going to be so frustrated with Tsubasa after this. This prank was harsher than usual. Usually he just dyed her hair a different color, or misplaced on of her belongings. He never really toyed with her emotions before. Something must have gotten into him, or he's probably hoping this will break her heart and make her realize her true feelings for him. Mikan rolled her eyes. Those two were incorrigible when it came to their feelings.

She heard the doors creak and peered at them. A little boy stood in the frame, his grey hair shined in the sunlight.

"Yoichi?" she called.

The little boy walked over to her and tugged on her hand.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, looking to the door he left open. No one was following him in. She frowned.

"I came to play," he said simply.

She bent down to his level. "Yoichi, who brought you here?" She looked around for Ruka, or Natsume. Heck even Koko or Sumire would make sense.

"I did."

Mikan shot up immediately as thousands of goose bumps raked her body. He stood in the door frame coolly, dressed in all white. A smirk framed his face. His appearance was unsettling, posing as a good angel.

"Persona." She reached for Yoichi and held him tightly in her arms. "What are you doing here?"

"We came to play," he stated obviously.

She glared back at him, waiting for a real answer.

"So cold," he said frankly.

"Where's Natsume?" she asked.

She watched as he slowly walked towards her. His footsteps, echoed. "He's doing me a little favor."

"Can't you do your own dirty work?" she spat.

"I'm curious," he said stopping an awkward distance away from her. "Why are you so concerned with my black cat?"

She hugged Yoichi tighter. "He's not some puppet for you to control."

"Control?" he asked bewildered. "I don't control him. He does as he pleases."

"No he doesn't," she glared at him. "You have his sister."

He stared down at her. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Not getting any honest answers, Mikan grew annoyed. "You should leave."

"I just came to play," he said offensively.

"No you didn't. What do you want?"

His eyes narrowed and he leaned closer. "I only wanted to see how you were doing, my kitten." His hand reached out and she flinched, leaving it to hang in the air for a moment.

"Where's Natusme?" she asked again, through gritted teeth.

He straightened. "I'll let him know you're worried about him," he said turning to leave. He stopped when he reached the door, turned and looked directly at her. His gaze was numbing. "Careful of the shadows," he said finally, before closing the door behind him.

She let out a shaky breath she had not known she was holding. Her hold on Yoichi was stiff, so she relaxed her arms. "It's okay," she whispered into his hair.

She stood there holding him until Misaki interrupted her silence.

"Mikan! You won't believe this. Hold on. Where'd the kid come from?"

She turned towards her. "What?"

Misaki eyed her. "You okay?"

"Yeah, sorry." Mikan composed herself. "What's up?"

"You won't believe it, but this cute soldier out of nowhere asked me out," she gushed.

"Really?" Mikan asked, playing dumb.

"Yeah, come on. I'll tell you all about it."

Mikan found herself in the food hall with an irate Hotaru sitting across from her. After explaining why Yoichi was there and the encounter with Persona, Hotaru was not happy, to say the least. She had promptly sent a message to Ruka demanding he come immediately when Mikan caved and confessed to her what had happened.

"I didn't punch him this time," Mikan offered.

"Yeah," Hotaru said. "Still trouble seems to be attracted to you."

"Yeah," Mikan said lamely.

They waited in silence for Ruka to arrive. When he showed up ten minutes later, he wasn't alone. Sumire and Koko had come with him. They all showed signs of confusion. Ruka's eyes widened though when he saw Yoichi eating some carrots next to Mikan.

He walked up rather briskly and looked at all three of them in turn. "He's supposed to be with Natsume," he said, concern etched on his face.

Mikan threw her hands up quickly. "That explains it!" she exclaimed.

Hotaru shot her a glare. "That doesn't explain anything."

"Oh right." Mikan said, "I guess it doesn't."

"We need to talk," Hotaru said to the newcomers.

They sat down and listened as Hotaru retold Mikan's story, Mikan occasionally butted in to add her own version. When they were done Ruka looked to Sumire and Koko, who both looked flustered.

"We need to tell you something," Koko said, glumly. "We weren't honest with you."

Mikan and Hotaru waited for Koko to continue.

"When we left weeks ago," he gulped, "we left because we went back to working for Persona."

Mikan choked on her words. "What?"

"We didn't have a choice," Ruka said.

"Wait. Even you Nogi?" Hotaru asked.

"Yes," he said, sadly. "All of us."

"Why?" Mikan asked.

"It doesn't matter why," Sumire snapped.

"Yes," Hotaru shot back, "it does."

"He had stuff on us," Ruka explained hastily. "He threatened us."

"And you're telling us now, because?" Hotaru asked.

"He let us go four days ago," Koko said. He still appeared to be in disbelief. "No strings. No nothing."

"That's good though, right?" Mikan asked, confused.

"No," Ruka said.

"Complete separation from Persona," Sumire said. "It had to come with a catch."

"Natsume," Koko started, glancing to Ruka, "he shouldered all our debts."

Ruka slammed his fist down on the table making Mikan and Yoichi jump.

"He was gone for a while, doing something for Persona, and when he came back, that's when we found out," Koko finished.

"We tried to get him out of it, we tried offering ourselves back to Persona, but he wouldn't take us." Ruka looked pale. "He said Natsume agreed to stay with him forever, in exchange for our freedom."

Mikan was visibly angry now. She shot up from her seat. "Forever? Why would he do that?" she asked.

"Mikan," Koko said. "We tried talking to him. Over and over again. He won't listen to us."

Sumire looked to the fuming Mikan. "We were hoping you could talk to him."

"Me?" she asked shocked.

"You both have a similar stubbornness about you," Sumire said glumly.

"Yeah," Koko added, "and you act rashly like him."

Mikan stared back and forth at them. "I don't act rashly," she said trying to defend herself. One look from Hotaru told her she did. "Besides," she went on, "What makes you think he'd even listen to me? He hates me—"

"You intrigue him," Ruka stated with certainty.

"I—what?" she asked.

"You get in his face," Ruka offered. Koko nodded his head in agreement. "No one else does."

"That's because he's rude," Mikan countered.

"Everything he does, he does intentionally," Ruka said. "He's my best friend. I know him."

"He's intentionally rude?" Mikan asked, trying to understand.

"No. Mikan please," he begged. "There's something there. I've seen it."

"Seen it?" She gawked at him. "You've seen nothing. There's nothing there! Except maybe a mutual dislike."

"Mikan," Koko said. "You can at least try."

Mikan huffed and slumped down into her seat. "It won't work."

"It won't hurt to try," Ruka said.

Mikan mumbled something under her breath. It probably would hurt, knowing Natsume, and recollecting their past encounters.

"You intrigue him too," Ruka told her quietly. "He acts differently around you."

Mikan crossed her arms over her chest. He acted like a jerk and how exactly was she was intriguing to him? She was far from extraordinary.

"Fine," Mikan caved. "When do you want me to talk to him?"

All three of them shifted in their seats. Sumire picked at her fingernails, and Koko looked down at the table. Ruka finally spoke. "Persona will most likely tell him he paid you a visit, and then he will come here."

She narrowed her eyes. "Why would he come here?"

"He just—he will," Ruka said.

"Can't wait," Mikan mumbled.

"Also," Ruka said reluctantly, "he'll probably be mad."

With a groan she let her head fall into her hands. This was never going to work, intrigue or not she was heading into a storm.


	12. Tug and Pull

**Chapter Twelve: Tug and Pull**

Mad was an understatement. The biggest understatement of the year. He was furious.

Before he inevitably found them they had been sitting around the food hall quietly eating their dinners. Conversation was kept to a minimum as everyone seemed tense. Mikan was especially tense. She had thought about sneaking out three or four times. She was agonizing and arguing with herself on whether or not she could do what the gang asked of her.

Her arm propped up her head on the table and with her other hand she pushed the peas on her plate back in forth as if in a trance. Ruka occasionally glanced her way, but she stopped returning his faint smiles.

She was bringing the spoon up to her mouth when her plate suddenly caught fire. She screamed and fell out of her chair in shock. The heat alone was startling. She stared at her burning plate from the ground with wide eyes. Her heart raced, she felt the pulse in her finger, throbbing. Her breathing quickened, she began to shake. Her eyes landed on him, he was donning his black attire again. His jaw was clenched, his muscles tense, and she felt scared.

Instinct took over. She ducked her head between her knees and yelled, "I can't do this!"

Her yell hung in the air. She snapped her head up and gasped. She hadn't meant to say that, she hadn't meant to get scared. She scanned the faces of her friends; they all registered shock. They were shocked at her, at her failure, at her succumbing to fear, so quickly too. Even Hotaru looked shocked.

Natsume was the only one that moved, as he walked towards her. Mentally, she cursed and waited for the harsh tug that would pull her to her feet, and ultimately her fate, but it never came. He stared at her and she stared back, it was long, but she never looked away.

His arms moved and she instinctively jerked back before she could realize her mistake. His eyes narrowed and grew cold. He had only moved to cross his arms.

"Are you that scared of me?" he asked, his voice was steady.

Mikan opened her mouth but no words came out. She was frozen.

Ruka rose from his seat. "Natsume," he said hesitantly, "wait—"

He didn't wait. "You better tell me right now what the hell you—"

Ruka rushed to stand in between Mikan and his best friend. "Stop," he said after a while. "I wanted—"

"Wait, Ruka," Mikan whispered from the floor. Silently she picked herself up from the floor. Her legs shook faintly with nerves. She took a deep breath and felt all eyes on her. "Sorry Ruka, everyone. I'll do it," she said.

She smiled at them then, and then looked to Yoichi. He looked lost. "Can you take Yoichi away for a moment?" She asked no one in particular, she didn't think he needed to see this moment.

Sumire and Koko both stood and took him from the room.

She turned to look at Natsume. She looked at his eyes, they were pinned directly on her.

"You're angry," she said.

He didn't say anything.

"I don't really know what to say," she said lamely.

"What is this? Some intervention?" he asked. "I'm leaving." He turned to leave.

With every passing second Mikan was beginning to regain her courage. She stepped around Ruka, stared at Natsume's retreating figure, and felt herself return to normal. She gritted her teeth, she was tired of him walking out and doing as he pleased.

She rushed over to him, grabbed his arm and yanked hard, so that he would turn around. "Hey!" she yelled and she did something unthinkable. She shoved him hard. He stared down at her in surprise or disgust, Mikan couldn't really tell, so she shoved him again and then a third time. The fourth time though, he stepped back and she stumbled.

"Are you done yet?" he asked her.

"No," she said shoving him again. "I have something to say to you, and you're going to listen."

"Why should I?" he asked lazily.

"You're being reckless," she replied.

"I'm being reckless?"

"Yes."

"You're the one picking fights with Persona," he stated casually.

She glared. "I didn't pick a fight with him. He came to me, with Yoichi! How could you leave a kid with him?" She fumed at him when he didn't answer. He broke her gaze to stare across the hall. "And another thing," she added, "why are you just throwing your life away for this guy? That's no way to live. Your friends are worried about you." She went on and on, she hit hard, criticizing his life choices. Every flick of annoyance on his face made her think of something else to tack on to the list.

Finally, he stopped her. "Why are you so interested in my life?" he asked.

"I'm not," she said taken aback.

"I'm not going to ask you again," he told her.

She threw her hands up in frustration. "I don't know! Maybe the same reason why you're so interested in mine."

He scoffed at her. "I'm not interested," he said.

She pointed a finger to his chest. "Yeah, you are."

"You are naïve," he said.

She stepped dangerously close to him. She made sure he was really looking at her before she replied. "I'm not. I know what this is." She motioned to the two of them. "I'm different, you're different." She enunciated the words clearly to express her point further. "It's intriguing," she said repeating Ruka's words. She watched his eyes for movement, a spark, hesitation, anything.

He kept them guarded. "Different," he repeated. "You can't even take care of yourself."

"I've been doing pretty fine, actually. You're the one that keeps coming back here to check up on me." She felt herself smirk, she knew she was right and she bet he knew it too.

He did know it, because after she said that he immediately took three steps away from her.

"You're the one that needs to be checked up on," she risked saying. "You're going out and making deals that can't be broken. You're heading right to your death."

"And what if that's exactly where I want to go?" he asked her, his crimson eyes were mischievous now.

She closed the gap between them and placed her hands on his shoulders, she shook him slightly. "Are you kidding me? How can you even think like that?" She looked down at her feet now. "Do you even remember what I said to you in the tombs?"

"Verbatim," he whispered. He said it so quietly she thought she misunderstood. Her eyes flashed to his, and suddenly they didn't seem as guarded.

He reached up for a strand of her hair, his fingers lightly brushing her cheek and he held it in his fingers. He stared down at it as he repeated her words now. Softly, he whispered " _Even though I don't have wings, I'll find some way to protect you now."_ She felt her one finger begin to pulse, as her words fell from his lips. _"There's nothing you can say, or do to make me change my mind."_ With that he dropped her hair and walked away without another word.

She felt nullified.

Mikan was standing dazed and confused in the food hall when Hotaru placed a hand on her shoulder.

"How did it go?" she asked.

"You were there, weren't you?" Mikan asked her.

Hotaru shook her head. "Yeah, but Ruka made me step away to the corner, so we didn't hear much."

Mikan wondered why they did such a thing. "Well, I'm not on fire," she said smiling awkwardly.

"He didn't look that mad, after a while either," Ruka mentioned. "That's good."

"That wasn't mad?" Mikan gaped at him.

"No," Ruka said. "He was pretty mellow. I think seeing you scared of him bothered him."

"But, a lot of people are scared of him, right?" Mikan asked.

"Yes," Ruka said, "but when you met you weren't scared of him."

She thought back on it, and suddenly she felt very troubled by her initial response to him. He probably thought differently of her at first since she wasn't scared of him, but now she expressed fear when meeting with him again. She wondered where he ran off to. Apologizing was her only way to right her wrong.

She turned to Ruka. "I need to find him," she said eagerly. He looked shocked. "I need to apologize for being scared," she explained.

"Mikan," Hotaru said, "are you sure?"

"Yes, it's something I need to do."

"If you think that's best," she said, her violet eyes wandered back to her leftover crab cakes on the table.

Ruka smiled at her then. "I should go find where those two took Yoichi." He turned to leave. "Oh Mikan," he added, I'd try under a tree somewhere. He's probably still nearby."

"Thanks!" she called running out the hall.

She found him in the courtyard, exactly where Ruka said he would be, lounging under a Sakura tree. She stared at him from a distance, suddenly nervous. She tried composing coherent strings of words into some semblance of an apology but she kept coming up blank. Him repeating her words from that night in the tombs fogged her mind and made her even more nervous.

Frustrated from the lack of being able to come up with an apology she made her way to him noisily so he knew she was coming. She stepped on the crunchiest looking leaves she could find.

"Hey," she called to him. She was close now and took another step, except this time her foot caught on an exposed root of the tree and she tripped onto his lap. Her forehead collided with part of his face and she heard him groan.

"Ugh," she moaned, pushing herself up somewhat so she wasn't sprawled out on his lap. "I wanted to—" she lost her train of thought. She watched as his thumb grazed his bottom lip. That must have been what her forehead hit. He was concentrating hard, his eyes down. She was suddenly very preoccupied with looking at his lips and is thumb gracing it ever so lightly. She bit her own bottom lip.

His eyes flashed to hers, his finger fell and she continued staring at his lips. His eyes narrowed and he promptly shoved her off of his lap. She fell onto her back momentarily dazed and blinked rapidly.

Regaining her composure, she sat up. "Sorry!" she yelled, bowing her head and then raising it. "And sorry for earlier," she lowered her voice, "for, uh, being scared of you. I'm not really." She smiled goofily. "See? Here I am. Not scared." She rambled on since he didn't speak. She waited for him to say something, anything but he only stared.

She was trying her best to right her wrongs and all he was doing was staring at her like she was an idiot. It frustrated her even more. Here she was making a fool of herself, once again, and all he wanted to do was stare, coldly at her, she noticed. She was probably annoying him now with her insistent apologizing, which she was now apologizing for. She was cut off by a flustered Koko landing hastily next to them, his wings appeared tense, and he looked wild and disheveled.

"Natsume," he panted. "There was another attack," more heavy breaths, "Yoichi," a hasty pause, "in trouble." He pointed off into the distance.

Before Mikan even registered what Koko said, and the severity behind it all, Natsume had shot to his feet, materialized his black wings, and took off in the direction Koko had pointed. Mikan didn't even have time to blink he was gone so fast. She shot to her feet shortly after as Koko took off after Natsume.

"Wait!" she yelled. She wanted to help. She ran in the general direction that Koko had pointed. How had there been another attack? She hadn't even felt it. Was this one different somehow? She ran past the fountain, her feet hard on the ground below. Her pulse accelerating, her breath ragged. They couldn't be far; she thought they had only gone out to play. She ran blindly, not knowing what lay ahead.

She ran past the entrance to the market and saw from a distance pandemonium. A shadow was attacking them. Koko and Sumire, and Yoichi and Ruka, and then Natsume, but there was no crack. So what exactly was going on? They seemed to be faring well against the single shadow on their own.

She kept running and was forced to stop when the ground started to shake. She fell to her knees as it shook violently and convulsed with a vigorous strength. A reaction was impossible due to the sudden shock and intensity. The ground surrounding them began to come undone, like stitches being yanked apart, it gave way, unyielding, and undeniably. The crack echoed in the air like a whip.

The tremors stopped and Mikan looked around frantically. Everyone had survived; Koko and Sumire were in the air, Natsume and Ruka on the ground with Yoichi cradled in their arms. They were stunned. Mikan could only imagine their delayed responses from being so close to the ground giving way.

She watched in horror as a group of shadowy arms reached up from the crack in a mass. Up close they appeared disfigured, and willowy, but what's more was that they had some sort of substance. They weren't tethered to the ground like shadows are fated. They sprang from the depth of the crack and hurled themselves onto their victims. Three attacked Sumire and Koko, their shadowy fingers grasped at their ankles and dragged them back onto the ground. They were temporarily stunned by the brute strength of the shadows and the flat impact of the ground. They screamed.

Another group went after Ruka and Natsume, separating them. Mikan watched hopelessly as they struggled against the shadow creatures. Even though they appeared to have substance, and weren't tethered to the ground permanently, they still possessed the other qualities of actual shadows. Fleeting attempts to grip them and disentangle themselves from them failed. Fingers grasped nothing, and slipped through nothing.

The shadows draped their slithering bodies across their wings, weighing them down, and trapping them. Mikan watched, frozen, as a lone shadow snaked its way across the ground to where Yoichi lay struggling. It grasped his tiny leg and pulled him across the ground towards the crack. Natsume thrashed about trying to loosen his attackers and he dove for Yoichi as the little boy was pulled over the edge. Natsume lay flat on the ground, half over the edge. His hand gripped Yoichi's arm and he held on tight, fighting the shadow trying to take Yoichi for itself.

Mikan's trance was broken and she sprinted to their location. She dodged one, two, three shadows that zeroed in on her. Her ears rang and she hurled herself onto the ground. She slid messily into place next to Natsume. She reached over the edge and grasped Yoichi's other arm with both her hands.

"Yoichi!" she screamed, desperately.

"What are you doing?" Natsume yelled back at her.

Mikan tightened her grip. The shadow pulled tightly on Yoichi and he cried out. "Helping," she said through gritted teeth.

She peered over the edge at the creature that desperately wanted Yoichi. Its scent wafted over her then, and she felt like gagging. It was vile, it was rotten, it was death.

"Arghh!" she cried. "How is this thing so strong?" She felt her grip slip and she gripped tighter. She felt like she was probably crushing the bones in Yoichi's poor arm.

She heard a blood curdling scream from Sumire and only hoped that Ruka and Koko were faring better than her.

"Get out of here!" Natsume shouted at her.

"Like Hell," Mikan spat. "I'm not leaving you."

He breathed heavily. Mikan imagined he was pulling harder than her, bearing all the resistance from the shadow.

"Can't you light a fire or something?" she asked him.

His eyes flashed to hers. "There's no way I'm letting go of him. I won't risk it."

She glanced at his hands grasping Yoichi's hand and wrist. He must need a free hand to conjure his fire, and he was probably already exerting a lot of energy holding on to him. Yoichi's face was contorted in pain and littered with tears. He was screaming.

"Yoichi," Mikan said as calmly as she could. "It's all right. We're here, Natsume and me." She felt a tear well up in her eye. "We'll protect you," blinking the tear fell onto Yoichi's cheek, "together," she finished.

She took a shaky breath and looked to Natsume. He stared at her, his eyes were crimson pools endless in depth. She felt like time was moving slowly as she stared into them. "Natsume," she whispered. She watched as his eyes suddenly widened and stared down at her. She followed his gaze to her arm.

The shadow gripping Yoichi was twisting, slithering, and curling its way up around her arm. Its touch was bitterly cold so much that it burned across her skin. She watched in horror as it snaked its way up her arm. It was almost like a ribbon that someone had wrapped around her. Her skin burned and it felt like the shadow was penetrating every layer of her skin to her bone. She winced in pain, her grip on Yoichi was slipping, and she was losing focus.

She risked a glance at Natsume. He was still staring at her, worried. She looked down again at the shadow as it now graced her shoulder. They both stared as it seemed to dissolve into her skin. Mikan tried to twist as much as she could, while still maintainig her small hold on Yoichi, to shake the shadow, but her twists only seemed to drive it forward. It felt as if the shadow had split into two, one part was snaking down her chest, and the other snaked its way down her back.

She convulsed in ways she didn't think she could move. Her breathing was heavy. The shadow was now gripping something inside of her. It was squeezing, and with each squeeze spasms of pain raked her body. Her eyes were tightly closed and she cried openly. The squeezing intensified, it felt like something was wrapping around deep inside her, tightly, and binding.

A fire burned inside her and she wanted it to end. It hurt so badly. This must be dying, she thought. Whatever the shadow was squeezing inside her, she felt it crack. From it, a blinding pain danced around her back. The shadow squeezed again and she tensed her whole body, ready for the pain this time.

"Mikan."

The squeeze tightened more and more, its grip was firm and relentless until she felt it shatter. The pieces trickled away.

"Mikan!" Who was calling her name?

Her eyes flew open, Natsume was staring at her with wide eyes. Her eyes met his and he searched them desperately.

She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, it was slow and steady. When the last of her breath trickled out she felt a new sensation, just as blinding, but the pain was mixed with something else, a rushing, and a cascading feeling of adrenaline.

The two feelings, pain and adrenaline raced through her body, through her fingers, through her head, through her legs, they were searching for a way out, but couldn't find one. She felt a ripping sensation in her back, the shadow was trying to rip its way from her body, and she felt a tug and a pull from her consciousness. The shadow, the pain, or the adrenaline, whichever it was, finally pushed enough and broke through. She imagined it erupting from her back and rushing out but instead she felt something else, something still tethered to her.

Blinding and bright, that is how someone would have described them at that moment: the two great wings that emerged from Mikan's back. She felt them, their greatness, and their beauty. She felt another tug and a pull. Her eyes blurred and she saw something slithering away and then she was gone.


	13. Wings Come Forth!

**Chapter Thirteen: Wings Come Forth!**

She was falling, or was it sinking?

Breathing in. Breathing out. Slowly. Surely. She was breathing.

Something was pulling her down. But then something was pulling her up.

Voices. Feelings. Images. She wasn't sure.

Breathing in. Breathing out.

Floating, the air tickled her skin. She was drifting, alone and in the dark.

Where was she?

Was she alive?

Yes.

No.

Her eyes searched rapidly. Was it dark or light? Black or white?

What was she seeing? Was there even anything to see?

The answer is no. There wasn't.

Whispers, shouts, and even tones enveloped her body. What were they saying?

She couldn't tell. The spoken words, the language, was it even real?

She couldn't remember what she was doing, or why she was even here is this limbo. What was she doing before this? Where was she? Had she fallen asleep reading again in the library? The library? That's where she was, she remembered now. She had been cleaning the library, sweeping the floors, and then Tsubasa was there with his crazy prank.

Wait that wasn't right. She couldn't be in the library. She remembered something, meeting someone, but why couldn't she picture them, or picture anything? Was it night? Night was never this dark. Was this person hiding in the shadows?

Shadows. The word hung in her mind, and memories flashed before her eyes. Shadows. Shadows attacking her friends. Shadows, erupting from the ground. Shadows, surrounding them. Shadows, surrounding her. Shadows creeping up her arm, creeping into her body. How was that possible?

She felt their icy trail across her whole body, snaking its way inside her. They had shattered something inside her, what was it?

Again, she relived how the shadow tightened its grip on her consciousness. It tugged and pulled. Where was it taking her and why did she resist following it into darkness? Succumbing to the shadow seemed much easier than resisting, than fighting it.

It felt like a trap. She was trapped in her own self-consciousness. She was constantly being pulled to the darkness and tugged back to the other side. The other side, was it reality? The side with the strange language, the ambiguous color.

And then she was drowning. But how could she be drowning, wasn't this just a dream? Why then did the water surrounding her feel so cold, and rush into her lungs? Her arms flailed but the water was resistant, it pushed her down further, it embraced her body. Her lungs were full, burning, and empty of air. She was dying.

 _But._ You can't die in a dream. Her eyes opened and searched the water. Looking up she could see light. The last bubble of air escaped her mouth and she watched it with her eyes. Then, she followed it to the surface. She parted the surface with her finger, testing it to make sure it would break. It rippled, and she knew then that this dream was over. She pushed herself upward and broke free. Her eyes flashed open and landed on the ceiling, this she knew was real.

She shot in her bed and breathed heavily. It felt like she had been suffocating. She stared across the room as her sight stabilized.

"Mikan!"

Why was she in her room? The last thing she remembered was holding on desperately to Yoichi. Mikan felt herself become embraced by Misaki. Her hug was tight, and she didn't let go.

"You're awake," Misaki breathed. "Oh my God." Mikan felt warm tears fall on her skin.

Mikan shoved Misaki off her bed to the floor. "Yoichi!" she yelled, her voice hoarse. "Where is he, is he okay?"

Misaki shocked from Mikan's roughness, stared at her before she got back to her feet. She pushed the restless Mikan back into her bed. "Stop," she said. "Mikan, stop," she demanded when Mikan didn't listen.

Mikan struggled to break free of Misaki, but Misaki was stronger, and overpowered her.

"Where is he?" Mikan screamed. "I have to help!"

Misaki pinned Mikan down onto her bed, shocking the breath out of her. "Mikan, listen," Misaki said. "He's fine. Yoichi's safe." Mikan's face relaxed a tad hearing her words. "Mikan, listen to me," Misaki continued, "You've been asleep for a month." She stared into Mikan's shocked eyes.

Mikan was confused. She was just holding onto Yoichi. How had it been a month? That would mean it was winter. She looked to Misaki. "What?" she croaked.

Misaki jumped off her bed. "Wait here, Mikan, please," she begged. "I'm going to find Hotaru. God, Mikan don't you even dare think of moving."

Mikan had no intention of moving. She was petrified. She couldn't wrap her head around it. Why had a month passed? What happened to her?

She was staring dumbly at the ceiling when she heard Hotaru enter her room. She sat up and leaned against the headboard to her bed. They both looked breathless.

"Hotaru," she whispered. "What's going on?"

Hotaru walked up to her best friend and held her hand. Mikan watched her face, her eyes were filling with tears, an unusual sight for her. Hotaru never cried. "You had me so worried," she told Mikan.

Mikan a sucker for tears embraced her best friend into a hug. "I'm sorry," she cried, tears welling in her eyes now too.

Hotaru pulled apart from her briefly to tell Misaki to call for her brother. "Tell him, his darling sister needs him here immediately."

Misaki nodded and exited the room.

"Mikan," she said, "I want you to listen to me, all right? Don't interrupt me, okay?" She sat on the edge of her bed, and Mikan nodded in response.

"You've been out cold for a month," she began, "I've had my brother come and heal you occasionally, to keep up your energy. We couldn't wake you though. You passed out during the shadow attack and have been here ever since." Mikan's eyes widened in understanding. Pieces were beginning to fall into place. "Everyone is all right. Everyone survived that attack. Yoichi is fine, he has come to check up on you often actually. You saved his life."

Hotaru's explanation was unexpectedly interrupted by a mass of individuals entering Mikan's room. They all crowded into her room, talking excitedly, and calling out hellos and well wishes to her. Misaki must have broken the news to more people. They all had smiles on their faces and she stared in awe as she took them in. They were all okay: Koko and Sumire, Ruka and Yoichi. Then her friends from the temple were there: Misaki, Tsubasa, Anna, Nonoko, others that she worked with. Her Grandpa even stood in the corner, his weight supported by a cane, he must still be slightly paralyzed.

They all crowded around her bed and suffocated the room. Everyone was talking, and some were crying.

Hotaru annoyed, turned to everyone. "Calm down," she demanded, "and get the hell out. One at a time, don't crowd her."

That's how it went. Hotaru shoved everyone outside and let them in one at a time. She chose to supervise each visit by sitting at Mikan's desk with her head in a book.

Tsubasa and Misaki came first. They each sat on her bed and hugged her simultaneously.

"You aren't ever allowed to sleep for a month straight ever again, you hear me?" Tsubasa remarked.

"Yeah," Misaki agreed. "You have to be there when Tsubasa plays stupid pranks on me!"

Mikan smiled at them. She appreciated that they treated her normally. It almost seemed just like another day with them. She remembered Tsubasa's last idea for pranking Misaki.

"How was that date?" Mikan asked her.

Tsubasa burst into laughter, and Misaki growled. "Yeah, my point exactly! This guy," she pushed Tsubasa, "thinks it's perfectly acceptable to set up a fake date and humiliate me."

"Oh come off it," Tsubasa said. "We had a good laugh afterwards."

Misaki sneered at him. "Only because I dumped my soup on you at dinner."

"Yeah, thanks for that. I smelled like tomatoes all night."

"Next visitors," Hotaru called.

"Hold on," Misaki said, "I'm like her next best friend, after you. I demand more time. There's so much to catch up on."

"Save it for later," Hotaru drawled.

Misaki and Tsubasa left reluctantly, and Anna and Nonoko came in next. They wished her well, and filled her in on the new gossip surrounding the staff, and their new potential suitors. Anna left her a slice of cake for her to try later. Her Grandpa came in after and told her how proud he was of her, and also how disappointed he was for her breaking her promise. He didn't seem all that upset though, as he kept going on about her heroic actions. All in all he was proud, and promised her he would cut the string that tethered her to the temple. His movements were restricted still and he left her room at a snail pace to attend to urgent business for the soldiers.

Visitors came and went and she was getting tired of telling them all the same thing: that she was fine.

She was stretching in the middle of her room when someone lightly knocked on her door, and Ruka and Yoichi came in. Her mood brightened instantly.

"Ruka!" she called. "Yoichi, hi."

Yoichi let her hug him. "I'm so glad you're okay," she said. "I was so worried."

Yoichi touched his hand to her cheek and lightly kissed her. It was a thank you, but she still felt herself blush, and she proceeded to hug him tighter.

"Ruka," she said moving to hug him. "You look well."

"As do you," he said.

"Ahaha, I mean I have been sleeping for a month apparently."

He smiled at her. "Yoichi has come almost every day to check up on you," he said admirably.

"Really?" Mikan asked. She leaned down to the kid's height again and smiled at him. "Thank you, Yoichi. I really appreciate it."

Ruka stared at her for a moment and she felt herself get nervous. "What is it?" she asked him.

Ruka shook himself out of his trance. "Ah, sorry," he apologized. "It's just, you saved our lives. We can't thank you enough."

Mikan chuckled nervously. "I don't know how," she said. "Honestly I don't really remember what happened after I blacked out."

His eyes fell into a confused stare. "You don't remember?" he asked her.

She shrugged. "Not really."

Hotaru stood from her position and walked over to them. She held out her hand, as if she was expecting something. "She's awfully tired, no wonder she doesn't remember," Hotaru said. Mikan however, didn't feel tired at all. "If you want to continue chatting, it'll cost you some money. After all there are still more people who want to see her," she continued on. "So what'll it be?"

Ruka blanked. "Ah, we'll come back later then," he said ushering Yoichi out the door.

"Ah, wait!" Mikan called after him. He stopped just in front of the door and waited for her to continue.

She suddenly didn't know how to ask him what she wanted to know. She wanted to know how Natsume was, and how he fared. She vaguely remembered him looking so distraught before she blacked out. She assumed he was okay, otherwise they would have said something, but she didn't know how she could ask him so casually without Hotaru getting suspicious.

Ruka looked at her then with a knowing look. "I'll let him know you're awake," he said before leaving her room.

She turned to her friend. "Hotaru," Mikan said. "Why'd you make him leave? I feel fine."

"Yes, well his face was annoying me," she replied dryly.

"Finally!" Sumire called waltzing through the door, Koko following behind. "I demanded they let me see you first, but no! Apparently I'm not one of your top friends. Those jerks," she scoffed. "They have no idea what they're talking about."

"Sumire," Mikan said shocked.

Sumire patted her on the back. "As reluctant as I am to say this," she paused for effect. "I owe you my life."

Mikan faltered, "Your life?"

"Yes! Oh my God!" Sumire said making a great display of herself, "It was amazing!" She turned to her abruptly. "You were amazing!" She turned to Koko now. "We were surrounded, and hopeless."

"Yes, woe was us," Koko said, equally dramatic.

Sumire continued, not happy with the interruption. "Yes, it looked like the end. Everyone was trapped, and then you came out of nowhere. At first it looked like you were going to make things worse but holy cow girl, talk about a secret weapon."

Mikan turned to Hotaru to gauge her reaction to Sumire's crazy antics and displays of affection, but instead of the annoyed look that she expected, Hotaru was emanating an icy glare in Sumire's general direction.

"I mean we had no idea girl," she said. Koko nodded his head in agreement.

Mikan stopped her then. "Okay," she said laughing. "What are you talking about?"

Sumire suddenly rounded on Mikan and clasped her hands in her own. "They were so glorious! I've never seen anything like it in my life—"

"That's enough," Hotaru cut in.

"What are you talking about?" Mikan repeated.

Sumire stared at Mikan like she was dumb. "Um, I'm talking about your wings. Duh."

"Stop," Hotaru said, coldly.

"They came out of nowhere," she said ignoring Hotaru.

"I said stop."

"And then the shadows just like peed themselves—"

"Sumire."

"Or something, which allowed Natsume to pull Yoichi to safety—"

A low growl erupted from somewhere inside Hotaru.

"And then he lit some fire," Sumire rushed her words now, equally growling. "What is your problem?" she yelled to Hotaru.

"You need to leave now," Hotaru said icily.

Sumire sneered at Hotaru, and Koko tried restraining her from attacking the raven-haired girl.

"Sumire," he drawled. "Calm down."

"Calm down? This brat is interrupting my story. I waited all day for this."

"I know," he said, turning to a frozen Mikan. "Er, are you alright?" he asked her.

Mikan stood openmouthed and just stared. Did Sumire say she had wings? And that they were glorious? Why didn't she remember that? Wait, why didn't Hotaru tell her immediately? To get wings has been her selfish desire since she could remember.

Mikan made a noise somewhere between a squeak and a cough, causing the room to direct their attention to her.

"I have wings?" she asked breathlessly.

Hotaru's jaw was taut, and Koko and Sumire stared dumbly at her.

"Wait," Koko said holding up his hands in disbelief. "You didn't know?"

"I—" Mikan paused. "I don't remember getting them," she said. She turned to Hotaru. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked her.

Hotaru's face was emotionless, like usual. "It wasn't the right time," she offered.

"Wasn't the right time?" Mikan asked, incredulously. "Are you kidding me?" A smile erupted on her face. "I have wings! Oh my God! Sumire. Koko. I, Mikan Sakura, have wings!" She jumped excitedly.

Koko joined her in jumping. "You have wings," he chanted. "Yay!"

Mikan stopped jumping and shook her hands violently. It was either the onset of a panic attack or a fit of the giggles, or maybe a mix of the two. She had wings. This means she was normal. She could experience flying now, and now she wasn't restricted. She started day dreaming, rapidly, all the possibilities that she was now open to. She was so excited. How cool, to own her own pair of wings, and Sumire even said they were glorious. Her eyes widened. What color were they?

"How do I bring them out?" she asked, excitement brimmed in her eyes.

The three angels across from her looked unsure at first. They were born with the ability so it was essentially just an extension of their body. It came naturally to them.

"Uh," Sumire said looking to Koko. "You just kind of do."

"Yeah," Koko agreed. "You kind of, uh..." He trailed off, not knowing how to describe the action.

"Hotaru?" Mikan asked, turning to her. Hotaru shrugged in response.

Mikan thought hard for a moment before shouting to no one in particular. "WINGS COME FORTH!" She danced a little and waited.

Koko burst out laughing, and Sumire promptly told her it doesn't work like that.

Koko lit up like a light bulb. "I know!" he cried cheerfully. "You know how you move your finger," he said. Mikan nodded. "Okay, well. You materialize your wings the same way you move your finger."

Mikan pondered for a moment, and wiggled her finger. So the part of her brain that tells her to wiggle her finger is the same part that will tell her to materialize her wings. So she just had to think it and they would materialize. Easy enough, so she thought hard.

Defeated she sighed, "Nothing's happening."

"Wiggle your back," Koko suggested.

Sumire glared at him. "That's not going to do anything."

"No," he shrugged, "but it feels good."

"Maybe you guys were just seeing things," Hotaru suddenly said.

"No," Sumire said confidently. "She had wings. We saw them."

Mikan turned to her friend. "Hotaru," she said slowly. "Is something wrong? You seem mad that I might have wings."

She sighed. "I just think it's a bad sign that you were asleep for a month, and those wings might be the cause of it. There's absolutely no documentation of this, so who knows what really happened or if you really do have wings. Maybe it was something else. It seemed like a very stressful situation to be in."

For some reason Mikan was getting more and more frustrated with her friend. It was like she didn't want her to have wings. This was her dream though, her wish, and her one selfish desire. How could they be a burden? They were a miracle. If she had them that is. She was feeling doubtful, by not being able to materialize them.

"Okay" Mikan huffed. "One last time, then I'll give up." Mikan dug down deep inside of herself. She thought of what she felt when Yoichi was taken, her grip on his tiny wrist, the feeling of the shadow creeping up her arm, and of it creeping inside of her. There. She felt it, something new. She concentrated on the new feeling, and with a final thought two great wings materialized from her back.

Sumire squealed, and Koko clapped. Mikan kept trying to look at them over her shoulder. They were a bright white, almost blinding. They reminded her of the first snow fall of winter, sparkling, and lightly coating the ground.

"I did it!" she screamed.

"You did it!" Koko cheered.

"They're amazing," she said, feeling their softness with her hands. "And the color, it's so, so—"

"Pure," Hotaru said.

"Yes!" Mikan jumped.

"They're the whitest I've ever seen." Hotaru congratulated her best friend. "They're beautiful."

Mikan grew excited thinking of all the things she could now do. She could learn how to fly. She could leave the temple more easily now. Her trips to the market would take less time too. She could share her feelings with others. Finally, she could fully participate in the wings touching ritual her grandpa always talked to her about.

"Hotaru!" She gasped, running up to her, "Touch my wings."

"No."

"Come on! I want to see what it's like."

"No."

Mikan redirected her attention. "Koko you do it!"

Koko grew slightly flustered. "Ah, no thanks."

"Yeah," Sumire interjected. "The only one he's gonna be swapping feelings with is me, if he ever does."

"Is it really that big of a deal?" Mikan asked. "My grandpa lets me touch his all the time!"

"Mikan," Hotaru said. "Touching the wings of another angel is actually really uncommon."

"And intimate," Sumire added.

Mikan sighed. Her grandpa must have just indulged her since she didn't have her own wings before. Hold on. Intimate? Didn't one just project the feeling they chose onto the other?

"How is it intimate?" she asked.

"You basically expose yourself to whoever's wings you touch." Sumire explained this all like it was the most obvious thing. "Not many people want to risk divulging their emotions and feelings like that so openly. I've never done it, so who knows what exactly happens. No one really talks about it."

"It takes a lot of trust," Hotaru added. "There's more to it too, I read. You have to be compatible with the angel and you have to be feeling the same thing at the same time. I've seen angels try it before and fail."

Mikan thought back to Persona's pub and all the angels there carelessly draping themselves over other's wings. It did seem odd. She wondered how their thoughts were tainted and what they shared. Were they actually sharing their feelings or were they just pretending? Now that she thought about it, had her grandpa been lying all along? She probably never reflected her feelings onto him.

"You guys have never tried it?" Mikan asked.

"I've seen my parents do it, once," Hotaru said.

"Yeah," Koko said. "I don't know if I could ever do that. It sounds terrifying."

"Yeah," Sumire added. "What if you share something super personal or who even knows! I don't want to risk it."

"It does seem kind of terrifying," Mikan said. She definitely didn't want to share any secret feelings with someone else, and who knows what kind of things someone could project onto her. It really did sound risky. Before she tucked her wings away she plucked a single feather from her wings to admire it and then she tucked them away.

"All right, well we have probably caused enough trouble. Sorry Hotaru." Koko waved apologetically. "We'll be off now."

"Later," Sumire called.

"Mikan," Hotaru said.

"Yeah?"

"Don't worry about anything. Okay? You just woke up."

"Yeah, you're right," she said smiling. "So what should I do first?"

"Wait for my brother to check you out first."

Mikan groaned. "Fine, then what?"

"Whatever we want," Hotaru smiled.


	14. Heavy Dirty Soul

**Chapter Fourteen: Heavy Dirty Soul**

Mikan was cleared by Hotaru's brother the next afternoon. He had extensively checked her wings and reflexes, and everything seemed to be in order. With the rest of her day she had convinced her Grandpa and Hotaru to let her visit her parents' grave with the company of Misaki and Tsubasa. She was shocked by the bitter cold when she stepped outside. In her mind it had gone from a crisp beautiful fall to just cold. Perhaps, that's what happens when you end up sleeping for a month.

"So cold!" Mikan said through chattered teeth.

Tsubasa had his head tucked deep into his scarf and mumbled an agreement. His hands were deep in his pockets and he looked pretty miserable. "Why can't we fly there again?"

Misaki glared in his general direction. "You know why, Mikan doesn't know how to fly."

"Yeah," Mikan said sheepishly, "Sorry about that."

"Tsubasa's just being a big baby, don't worry about him." Misaki sneered at him.

"Plus walking takes longer," Mikan added.

"Yeah, yeah." Misaki nodded. "Wait. Why does that matter?"

Mikan rolled her eyes at her. "I overheard Anna and Nonoko earlier this morning. You guys are throwing me a party or something, aren't you?"

Misaki grinned. "So you knew about that huh?"

"Of course, and the longer we take out here, the less you have to help set up for it Tsubasa. So it's a win-win."

He grunted.

It took twenty-six minutes to walk to the grave. The cold air slowed their pace. Mikan approached her parents' grave slowly. So much had happened since she last visited and she felt different. She had battled shadows, and won apparently. She had wings, and they were magnificent. She felt tears well up in her eyes. She desperately wished that she could have shared all these experiences with them in real life.

A single black rose lay in front of her parents' grave. She knelt down and picked it up. Who left it there? She wasn't aware of anyone else besides her visiting their grave, and if anyone did they wouldn't leave something so eerie like a black rose behind. It appeared to be fresh but flowers don't grow in the cold, so she wondered where it had come from. The cold was only just now causing it to wither and shrivel.

"That's odd," Tsubasa said.

"Yeah," Mikan said.

"I wonder who left it." Tsubasa said looking around for a culprit.

"I don't know," Mikan whispered.

"Still, let's pay our respects. It feels like it's getting colder." Misaki offered.

They offered up their respects and hoped for their well being. Tsubasa recalled a story about a prank he had played on Mikan when she was younger for some reason. Mikan lost track of his story though. Her thoughts were elsewhere, particularly on the black rose that lay alone on the ground. It really gave her a strange feeling. She felt like removing it, like it didn't belong.

"Hey," Mikan said, "let's go to the market. I want to see if Misaki-sensei knows anything about this flower."

"You think he made it?" Tsubasa asked.

"He does have the ability to manipulate plants," Misaki said shrugged. "He could know something."

"All right, let's make it quick though." Tsubasa shivered in the cold.

Mikan pocketed the rose and they made their way to the market. Their cheeks were rosy and their fingers were numb when they got there.

Misaki-sensei's shop was small and tucked between the bakery and the shop where Mikan bought the glass sakura flower for Ruka earlier in the summer. They entered the shop and were embraced by the fire warming the small shop. Flowers varying in color littered the shelves, along with various vines, and other odd plants that Misaki-sensei had created with his ability.

"Hello!" he called to the three.

"Hello," they called back.

"What brings you three out to my shop on a cold day like today?" he asked them.

Mikan removed the black rose from her pocket and held it out to him. He took it from her and admired it.

"How peculiar," he mumbled.

"Did you make this?" Mikan asked. "It was on my parents' grave and I just wanted to know where it came from."

"Well, I've never made a black rose before." Misaki-sensei peered at the rose closely, and Mikan felt upset that the flower couldn't lead to anyone. "I did make this flower though," Misaki-sensei added.

"Really?" Tsubasa asked. "How can you tell?"

Misaki-sensei held up his hands. "There's an art to flower making," he said in a showy manner that caused Tsubasa to roll his eyes. "Making flowers is a very delicate process. You have to cross breed them correctly, and with the help of my ability I can do as I please with them. Roses are quite popular here, you know. This particular rose started off maroon. Now, there are ways to change the color of a flower, but—"

"That's all very fascinating," Tsubasa said cutting him off. "Now can you tell us who bought it?"

Misaki-sensei wasn't too happy about being cut off. "You know, a lot of people come in to buy my flowers since I'm the only supplier during the cold season." He picked up the rose again to glance at it once more. "This one was probably bought two days ago; it's actually in pretty good condition considering. Now, roses are pretty popular, but not maroon ones, and just buying one at that. Oh that's right. Two guys about your age, I'd say bought one the other day. They were very odd. one was quite the chatter box."

"What did they look like?" Mikan asked.

"Oh well," Misaki-sensei raked his brain for their appearance. "One had long orange hair, he was pretty flamboyant from what I remember. He looked around for a while, but his friend was very strange, too. He had bandages across his neck and one eye. They were quite an odd pair."

Mikan looked to Misaki and Tsubasa but they both shrugged at her. Neither had hears of the two guys either.

"You know," Misaki-sensei said. "You really shouldn't remove flowers from someone's grave. That seems like a very rude thing to do."

Mikan tensed a little, and laughed. "Ah, sorry. We were just curious, that's all."

"Yeah, we'll go put it back now," Misaki said, taking the rose from him.

Misaki-sensei walked them to the door, all while pointing out various flowers and plants he had created. He pointed to some vines that he said were pretty invasive and that grew fast, perfect for covering up things. He opened the door to bid them farewell when he stopped. "Oh," he said. "I think those two guys are over there actually." He pointed across the way to the two guys he had described earlier, one with orange hair, and the other with a bandaged face.

"Thanks Misaki-sensei!" Mikan said, promptly shoving the door in his face.

"What luck!" Tsubasa said. "I can't believe they're across the market."

"What should we do then?" Misaki asked.

Mikan eyed them from afar. They did seem a little odd from where she stood, she didn't recognize them, and why did they alter the color of a single flower to leave on her parents' grave? She glanced around them and she felt a pit fall in her stomach. Persona was standing off to the side of them, talking to someone shrouded in the shadows of the shop. "That's Persona!" She nudged Misaki in the ribs.

"The suspicious looking one?" Misaki asked.

"Yes!" Mikan cried. "Let's follow them."

"But he looks suspicious," Misaki said.

"He always looks like that," Mikan said waving her off. She moved towards them, motioning for Tsubasa and Misaki to follow. All three put their hoods up to cover their heads.

They watched from a distance. The two that had bought the maroon rose were bickering with each other, or at least the one with orange hair was bickering with himself and flinging his hands in the air wildly. Persona was still leaning in towards his mysterious conversation partner.

"What do you think they're doing?" Tsubasa asked.

"I can't tell, maybe we should get closer." Mikan inched forward ever so slightly.

"How about we go home?" Misaki asked.

"No!" Mikan hissed.

The two suspicious rose buyers and Persona left whoever they were talking to and started making their way down the row of shops. The orange haired one was particularly interested in touching everything. His fingers traced over every item he looked at. There seemed to be no system to what they were doing, it honestly looked like they were zigzagging their way through the market, stopping at random shops on a whim.

Fifteen minutes had passed by with no success in finding out who the rose buyers were or why they were out with Persona. Misaki was finally fed up and demanded that they should head back to the temple before she died of boredom and frostbite.

Mikan reluctantly tore her gaze from the three. "No Misaki, I want to get to the bottom of this."

"Why?" Misaki cried back.

"Those guys are somehow involved with Persona, and I want to know why they left a black rose on my parents' grave."

"Maybe it wasn't even them!" Misaki said loudly.

Mikan hushed her quickly. "My gut tells me it was."

"Uh, guys," Tsubasa said.

"Tsubasa, shut up," Misaki told him. "Mikan, let's go, please. I have a bad feeling about this."

"Ten more minutes, I'm going to get closer." Mikan bargained with Misaki until they agreed on a solid five minutes. She turned back around but the three were gone. Her eyes searched the area frantically and she left out a cry of frustration. "Where did they go?"

Tsubasa tried to calm her down. "I was trying to tell you, but you two were going at it. They split up and disappeared."

"Perfect!" Mikan huffed.

"Great, now we can leave," Misaki said with a tinge of triumph.

"Excuse me ma'am, you dropped this."

With a flourish, the orange haired individual stood, the stem of the black rose was nestled between two of his fingers across his chest. Misaki, Mikan, and Tsubasa all visibly tensed.

Misaki fumbled in her pocket, the rose was no longer there. "I never dropped that," she stated.

"But surely you did," he replied. "My friend here was a witness to it." The guy with the bandage appeared from an alleyway. He appeared bored, and his arms were crossed. Misaki scoffed at them in response.

"What an interesting rose," he continued, twirling it in his fingers. "Where ever did you get it?"

Mikan took a step close to him so she could glare more closely at him. "You should know."

"I should?" he asked. He made his face to show bewilderment.

"Yeah," she spat at him. "You both know."

"What?" he said, exaggerating his look of shock. "Hajime, you know where this came from?"

"No," Hajime replied. His one eye was like a slit and stared lifelessly at them.

"You know," the orange haired guy said, "I have a friend that might know." Following his remark, he loudly called for Persona in no particular direction at all, and he appeared from behind them. Mikan tried to burn him with her eyes. It was an unsuccessful attempt, however.

"Rui," Persona said, "there is no reason to shout."

"This is your expertise," he said presenting the rose to him.

His bony fingers took the black rose from Rui's. He held it straight up, glanced at it for a moment and then at Mikan. He didn't speak. Mikan figured he was waiting for her to say something.

She broke her gaze from him and sneered at Rui and Hajime. "Why did you two creeps put that rose on my parents' grave?"

"What?" Rui stared dumbly back at her.

"I don't even know who you are," Hajime said.

Mikan stood staring back in forth between the two. They certainly had bought the rose, but if they didn't leave it, who did?

Persona answered her silent question. "I had one of my girls put it there."

She stepped back. "What? Why?"

"I was just paying my respects," he said holding up his hands.

"That's bullshit," she spat.

"Hey, Mikan," Tsubasa said. "We should go."

"No!" she yelled. "What were you really doing there?"

He twirled the rose some more in his fingers. She wondered how the thorns weren't pricking him. He brought it to his nose and smelled it. "I was hoping you would discover it, and come searching for who put it there," he said. "And look at that, it worked. Now we can finally have a nice chat."

"That's ridiculous," Tsubasa said. "How could you gamble on something like that?"

"Hey punk," Rui shot at Tsubasa. "Persona doesn't gamble."

"Who're you calling punk?" Tsubasa spat back.

"I do believe I called you a punk," Rui said.

"Do you want to have a go with me?" Tsubasa asked.

"Oh!" Rui brightened. "I would love to."

"Leave him be, Rui," Hajime said. "He's probably scared of his own shadow."

Tsubasa disgusted with Hajime's comment looked at his shadow before responding. "Me and my shadow get along great."

"Enough!" Mikan called. "What do you want Persona?"

"I heard the good news," he said, simply. "We'd love to see them."

Mikan felt her throat dry. She knew what he was talking about. He wanted to see her wings. She could easily show them to him, but for some reason she didn't want to appease his whims. She felt Misaki grasp her arm, it was her way of telling her not to as well. She studied Persona's face, trying to discern what his endgame was for all of this, for her. His attention was stolen by someone approaching from behind them.

"Oh," he said with a hint of mischief. "Just in time, Natsume."

She immediately felt her finger pulse. She hadn't seen him since Yoichi was in trouble that one day. The day that felt like it was just the other day but it was actually a month or so. She had never seen him so desperate before, and so disheveled. She turned to see him sauntering up to them. He was wearing his black jacket and looked just as composed as ever. He stopped just shy of her.

"Our cute little kitten was about to show us her wings." Mikan didn't exactly like how he called her "our." She moved to get in his face but Natsume stopped her by extending his arm, and blocking her movement.

"It's done," Natsume said, speaking only to Persona.

Persona smirked at Natsume. "Quick like always. Very well. Rui, Hajime. Let's go."

"Yes!" Rui said excitedly as Persona turned to leave. "Until next time," he called to Tsubasa winking.

"Natsume," Persona called over his shoulder. "We're done for now. I'll come find you when I need you." Wordlessly he tossed the black rose over his should and Mikan caught it. One of its thorns pricked her finger and a trickle of blood emerged.

"Now I see why everyone dislikes that guy," Tsubasa said.

"He creeps me out," Misaki said. "What's with his weird obsession over you Mikan?"

Mikan shrugged. She was busy watching Natsume watch Persona leave. He seemed different. The fire in his eyes was dull. He moved his hands deep in his pockets and let out a deep breath. What had Persona made him do now? What had he been doing this past month? It wasn't her place to ask but then again she never really listened to what others expected of her. She looked down at her bleeding finger and dropped the rose; it might have been a trick of the light but it looked ever darker than it had before. No one watched as it silently fell to the ground.

"Hey," she said quietly. "What did he make you do?"

Her question hung in the cold air for a while before he answered. "It's not important," he said.

"Mikan, we're going to head back, you coming?" Tsubasa asked.

She told them to go on ahead and she assured them she would catch up, shortly. She wasn't done yet. Something was different, something was wrong. Something was weighing heavily on him. She expected him to be angry with her following Persona, but he made no comment about it, instead he started walking away from her.

She jogged towards him. "I don't really know how it happened, but I have wings now, and for some reason I wanted to thank you."

They stood alone on the street, the contrast between them was striking. His all black attire, and her all white; those wandering certainly would have had their attention stolen by the two. Mikan watched as she waited for his response. His eyes were definitely dull, they seemed to be weighted down by something.

Both pairs of eyes were momentarily distracted by a single snowflake that drifted down between them. Mikan held out her hand to catch it. The flake landed in her palm, and they both looked down at it. It was the first snow of the winter. The flake was delicate and for an instant it looked like it would never fade away.

"Congratulations," Natsume said, breaking the silence. Her eyes snapped to his. "On your wings," he elaborated. "You're just like everyone else."

He left her standing alone in the marketplace. The snowflake in her palm had melted. In all the excitement, she had failed to realize the one thing that had previously connected them. He was the only different one now. The intrigue and the feeling must be gone. She was just another ordinary angel to him. Nothing more.


	15. Yin and Yang

**Chapter Fifteen: Yin and Yang**

Mikan stood transfixed in her room. Nonoko and Misaki were fumbling around in her room trying to dress her for the party. She was felling really uneasy about her encounter with Natsume, and she kept trying to replay it in her mind. Surely he didn't despise her even more now that she was normal?

"Hello you there?" Misaki asked the dazed Mikan.

Mikan blinked out of her daze. "Yes."

"Good, I picked this up for you, put it on." Misaki handed her a simple white dress to wear.

Mikan pulled the dress on over her head. The dress was beautiful, it had a single long sleeve that hung off her shoulder and the rest of the dress draped down to her knees. She would have to stay inside for sure.

"I look," Mikan started.

"Like a goddess!" Nonoko interjected. Misaki beamed at her gift.

Mikan sighed. She might look great but she felt far from it. Was it really okay to be celebrating such a thing?

"What's with the frown?" Misaki asked, frowning herself.

"Just a mood, I guess."

"Well quit it!" Misaki said. "Mikan, you've been dreaming about this since you were born. Come on," she said grabbing her hands. "Look at you, you are stunning."

"Yeah Mikan," Nonoko agreed. "Everyone is so happy for you!"

Mikan was sure there was one person who wasn't happy for her but she didn't speak up. She let her friends curl her hair and talk her into a good mood. This was her night and she had a right to be happy.

The party was just the thing she needed to lift her mood. The only thing Mikan was thinking about was how much of a good time she was having. The gang had certainly made a spectacle of her. Anna had prepared so many delicious treats and Nonoko had gathered all her friends and fellow workers to celebrate with her.

The hall was filled with angels conversing and having a good time. Nothing seemed to be weighing them down, everything was good and everyone was happy. Anna kept insisting that Mikan try everything she made, but after the second tart, fourth cookie, and third piece of cake Mikan was full. She had to politely decline the delicious looking chocolate truffle.

She made her rounds, thanking everyone that came to celebrate with her in turn. It took a while as everyone wanted to give their own advice and share stories about their own adventures with their wings. Sakurano had told her a particularly funny story about him and Hotaru's brother racing one day when they were little, but they had flown for so long that they ended up a little bit lost.

Her grandpa and some of the other elders that helped out in the temple were boring her at the moment with how to properly care for one's wings. For the first time, she was bored of people telling her about wings. There's only so much interest one can give when it comes to grooming one's wings. Her eyes began to glaze over when she felt a familiar prick on her finger.

She glanced down to where Persona's rose had stuck her and frowned. It was bruising oddly. She didn't know a rose prick could heal in such a way, it seemed a little abnormal, and it stung randomly. She rubbed the wound as if to make it disappear but it only irritated it more. Frustrated, she gave up and decided on ignoring the little annoyance. It would pass in time.

The elders were getting into a new topic that she had no knowledge on and she decided excusing herself was the best course of action. She wandered around the room looking for some of her friends. She found Hotaru first over by the dessert table.

"That one's pretty good," Mikan said pointing to a piece of pink cake.

Hotaru picked up a slice and the two found a table to sit down at. Hotaru looked calm and collected and Mikan wondered if Tsubasa or Misaki had told her about their encounter with Persona yet. When she caught up with them earlier she made them promise not to tell Hotaru, and for once it seems like they kept their promise. She would have to find them later and thank them. They had been mysteriously absent for a while.

"Are you happy?" Hotaru asked out of the blue.

Mikan thought for a moment. Happy. Did she mean happy from the party or happy about her wings. Either way the answer would be the same. "Yes," she said smiling.

"Good," she replied, biting into her cake.

In spite of everything that had happened, Mikan truly was happy. She wasn't going to let Persona, shadow attacks, or the grumpy black angel damper her mood. She was excited to learn how to fly, and to explore places she previously couldn't. She wanted to learn now, she was so impatient.

She brought the topic of her learning to fly up to Hotaru, who in turn told her she would teach her to fly for a small fee. Mikan didn't really want to pay her, but she figured Hotaru would be the best teacher. She was a great flyer after all.

"Can we start tomorrow?" Mikan asked, excitedly.

"Maybe," Hotaru said.

Mikan squealed and hugged her best friend. Hotaru half hugged her back.

"I need more cake now." Hotaru left Mikan to find someone new to bother.

She spotted Ruka walking toward her, alone. She met him half way.

"Ruka, you made it!" she said. She noticed his coat was still buttoned. He must have just gotten here.

"You look lovely," he said.

"Ah, thank you," she said shying away from the attention he gave her.

He fumbled in his coat pockets for a moment before pulling something out. "Here," he said, "I got you something." He opened his hand and revealed a small figurine of a white bunny. He placed it gently in her own hand.

"This is so cute," she said, before thanking him.

"I figured you could have that since you gave me the Sakura earlier."

Mikan was reminded of the day she dragged him across the marketplace. It was the day she officially branded him as their friend. She laughed at the memory.

"Yoichi helped pick it out," he said.

"Yoichi?" she asked, looking around for him. "Is he here too?"

"He's over by the window enjoying some cake," he said pointing behind him.

She was shocked when she looked over to the window. Yoichi was over by the window, but he wasn't alone. Natsume was there too, sitting in the window frame looking out into the night. His arm rested on his propped up leg. She was again struck by his white attire. She wondered if he changed his appearance to suit whatever crowd he was hanging around at the time. He looked good in white, so why didn't he just wear it all the time? Then again, he also looked good in black. Why did he wear black in the first place? Wait. Why was she suddenly so concerned with his dress attire?

"Natsume's here too," she said shocked.

Ruka blinked at her. "Why wouldn't he be?"

She thought back to their recent encounter, where he acted coldly towards her. "Just thought he would be… uh busy."

Ruka laughed. "Nah, he said Persona actually gave him some time off. Which is good, he's been so preoccupied lately."

Mikan nodded at him, she was at a loss for words.

"Here," Ruka said. "He hasn't seen you since he visited you two weeks ago. You should go say hi, since he probably won't come to you."

Natsume obviously didn't tell Ruka about their encounter earlier. She was almost positive that he would. Hold on. Two weeks ago she was still in her weird coma. "He visited me?" she asked, astonished.

"Yes," Ruka said. "You saved all our lives. His included, and more importantly, Yoichi's."

She looked unsurely at him. "I didn't do anything though. All I did was faint."

"That's not how I saw it. Your wings stunned the shadows somehow. The one holding onto Yoichi actually fell, letting Natsume pull him up. Then we found out that Natsume's fire can harm them." Mikan's eyes widened at that new bit of information. "But none of that would have happened if you hadn't been there."

"I just wanted to help, that's all," she said.

"I'm sorry you got hurt in the process." Ruka's face grew somber. "Natsume said you looked like you were in so much pain, but you never let go. None of us ever wanted to put you in such a position. Him, especially." Ruka's gaze went to Natsume, and Mikan felt herself get sad. She felt the need to comfort him, and assure him that she was okay.

She took a hesitant step towards Natsume. Their conversations always seemed to go south quickly, but this time she wanted to remain calm and composed. She wouldn't yell, she wouldn't cry, and she wouldn't be scared. She took another step closer but was interrupted.

"Mikan!" Anna called. Others followed behind her: Misaki, Tsubasa, Nonoko, and Sumire.

Mikan jumped. "Anna," she said.

"I was just talking to Sumire and she kept going on about how wonderful your wings are!"

"Oh," Mikan replied looking to a smirking Sumire.

"You have to show us!" Nonoko said.

"They're super white," Tusabasa said. "Mikan showed us this morning."

"Come on Mikan, please?" Anna begged.

"All right, all right," Mikan said. She was surprised she hadn't shown Anna and Nonoko yet. Actually, she hadn't shown a lot of people her wings yet. No one had asked her yet and she had forgotten among all the excitement. She gave herself some room and she felt herself get excited. She couldn't wait to see the look on her friends' faces when they saw her wings.

She straightened her posture one last time to build up the suspense. The prick of the thorn on her finger flared up and she tried to shake it away but it lingered. She would have to ignore it for now.

She looked to their faces, they showed anticipation. With one last smile she felt the pull of her wings and materialized them. She expected cries of joy and excitement not the looks of shock and fear that she got instead. The smile melted off her face instantly.

She also got a scream from Anna, who promptly covered her mouth, her eyes were wide. She heard collective gasps too as the room grew quiet and tense. Mikan's breathing grew heavier and she felt the finger prick again. She looked to her left wing, it was snow white. Confused, she looked to her right one. Her pulse quickened. Her breath caught. Her right wing wasn't white. It was black.

Her ears buzzed with whispered chatter. Chatter about her, about her wings. The blood rushed through her body, her vision became unfocused, and her breathing was ragged. She bolted for the door. Everyone parted easily for her, it was like everyone was scared of her. No one tried to stop her, and no one called out to her. She felt her wings disappear, she must have unconsciously tucked them away.

She slid around the corner and ran straight for the door outside. They swung on their hinges in the cold winter air. She wanted to get as far away as possible. The shocked faces of everyone were engraved in her eyes and Anna's scream rang in her ears.

Why? Why was one of her wings black? It had been white that morning. Wings don't just change colors. Everyone. Everyone was scared. They were scared of her. It was on everyone's faces. Pure fear.

Her feet moved fast. She couldn't fly away so she had to run. She left tracks in the snow coating the ground. There were no other tracks to confuse hers, but she was sure no one would come looking for her after that. It was like she had petrified them. The snow was falling heavily anyway, so it would cover her tracks if someone did come looking for her. The wind did its part in blowing her tracks away.

It was dark. The road she was on was lit dimly, and the moon was partially covered by clouds. Her white dress was dully illuminated by the moonlight. Her chest grew tight with the cold air she was breathing in, her throat raw. Her eyes were wide, and they scanned the path in front of her quickly.

She wasn't running anywhere in particular; she was just running, running until she couldn't anymore. Until she was far, far away. She had just ran past the fountain in the courtyard when her foot caught on some black ice and she fell. Her knees scraped the ground and she bent over. The tears came now, hot and fast.

The cold finally caught up to her and it penetrated her skin. Snow landed on her single exposed arm, and her legs felt the snow beneath them. It was cold. She was cold. She couldn't move though, her body shook because of the cold and because of the fear she felt. She buried her face in her hands and cried some more.

Why? Was she somehow cursed? Was this some sort of punishment? She didn't understand any of it. She was scared to go back home. She was even too scared to double check her wings to verify that one was the wrong color. Maybe this was just a nightmare. A cruel prank. A trick of the light. She pinched herself to check. It didn't work. This was real life. This was it.

She hunched over more when the wind picked up. Her head snapped up when she heard footsteps. She cried more. Why was he here? Why did it have to be him? He fell to his knees in front of her, his black wings were still out. He didn't say anything, which caused her to cry more. A strangled sob escaped her lips.

His eyes flashed to hers. It was like he was speaking to her, even though he wasn't. She felt her breath steady as he searched her eyes. _Show me,_ they whispered. If it was anyone else, she would have yelled for them to leave her alone. He, however, compelled her. She closed her eyes and looked down at her lap before she materialized her wings.

After a moment she finally gathered enough courage to look up. His eyes were fixed on her one black wing. She moved her own to look at his. They were still out which was unusual, he usually tucked them away immediately whenever he landed. She felt drawn to them and she instinctively leaned toward them.

He must have been drawn to hers as well because the next thing she saw was him extending his hand towards her. The movement was slow. His hand hovered just shy of her wing, and she held her breath. He was going to touch her wings. Sumire, Koko and Hotaru's conversation with her earlier flashed into her memory. She looked into his eyes, they seemed to be calculating something unseen to her.

His eyes moved to hers and she gulped. She stared back with wide eyes. She was unsure of what to do. There could be a chance that nothing would happen if he touched her wings, or there could be something more explosive. She was scared of the latter. She let out a shaky breath and her eyes softened. "It's okay," she whispered to the ground.

His touch was gentle before it tightened and clenched on some of her feathers. It felt like fire. It was warm and the sensation spread throughout her wings. The sensation was somewhat calming and she felt herself relax.

The feeling didn't last long and she didn't expect what came next. The weight of the mass of emotions overwhelmed her and she had to use her arms to keep her upright. He was projecting his emotions onto her. She wasn't sure if it was subconscious or not or how it worked but they came in flashes. This was completely different than what she knew, from what she expected.

First came frustration, she felt it. It was his frustration, and his alone. There was a sense of uncertainty mixed in. The emotions brought up memories then. Some were hers, and the others she did not recognize. They must have been his. Is this how touching another's wings worked? She would have to tell Hotaru she was mistaken. This was different and more intense than they had described earlier. The images flashed in her eyes. It looked like he was searching for something, or someone. There was no way he had any control over what he was sharing with her. Whatever divine faith controlled their fate was relentless and chose for him.

The emotion suddenly changed from frustration to regret. An image of a little girl now, and of her lying on the ground desperately holding onto Yoichi, and then of her and the shocked party guests around her. Regret changed to anger, and she felt herself heat up. The anger was directed mostly at his actions and Persona, but she felt her presence there too. His grip tightened.

Mikan felt like her head was swimming. She couldn't focus, there were too many emotions being projected onto her. Their eyes met again and his were red, so red. A single tear fell from her eye and shocked her. She didn't even feel it come on. She tried blinking away the shock but instead she felt more tears fall silently from her eyes. This was sadness, his sadness. His eyes looked pained, he must have realized what she was feeling then. She willed her tears to stop but they wouldn't. They fell quickly down her cheeks.

She felt his grip against her feathers soften, he was pulling away, but she didn't want him to. She silently pleaded to whatever it was that compelled them, be it the divine faith, or just random occurrence, to let them stay connected. Fate was cruel and blessed her with a new feeling of pain. It hurt and flowed through her body. Their shared pain. She reached for his free hand to reassure him and squeezed it.

The emotion changed violently. The pain was gone, and a strong emotion replaced it. Mikan blinked, her heart quickened. This feeling felt like fire coursing through her veins. She couldn't place it. As soon as it had come it was gone. Natsume had removed his grip from her wing.

His eyes were now guarded, and they looked away. She wasn't sure what to do. Should she say something? She looked around. The snow was piling up and his hair sparkled with half melted flakes.

She wanted to touch his wings, to feel them but she was scared. She thought she could control what she projected but now she wasn't sure. What exactly went on in his mind when he was gripping her wing? She moved her hand but hesitated slightly. She was inches from his black feathers. His eyes flashed to hers as if he had felt her hesitation.

"Stop," he said, and she froze. He stood and backed away from her. She remained frozen on the ground. Her hand remained hanging in the air. "I don't want to feel your fear," he said turning, and then taking flight. He left a shocked Mikan alone on the ground. She looked up and only saw falling snow and the blurry outline of stars, they were taunting her.

The warmth that had previously been encircling her body was gone, and she shivered, now aware of the cold air. Her mind raced. Natsume had just touched her wings, and when she reached for his he retreated. He must have been able to read the fear on her face. She mentally cursed herself. After all that, she still managed to show him the one thing he didn't want to see from her.

She looked to the spot he had been gripping on her black wing and smoothed it over. It was slightly warmer than the surrounding feathers. She looked to her white feathers and felt them. They felt the same. The only thing different was their color. She looked back at the black ones and was reminded of the last thing she felt from him. What was it?

She shot to her feet and hid her wings. Her heart hammered in her chest as she ran all the way home.


	16. Weightless

**Chapter Sixteen: Weightless**

Hotaru had been ignoring Mikan, actually a lot of people had, but Hotaru bothered her the most. She was supposed to be her best friend. It had been three days since the party and Mikan was tired of Hotaru excusing herself from the room whenever she entered like she was diseased.

She entered the food hall with a strong determination. Hotaru was sitting off to the side quietly eating with some of their other friends. Mikan kept her gaze focused firmly on her friend. When Mikan was just moments away from her, she looked up and promptly made to leave. Seeing this made Mikan angrier.

"Hotaru!" she screamed, silencing the food hall. "Stop right there!"

Hotaru, did not particularly like the new attention, but still she stopped and rigidly turned to Mikan.

Mikan got straight to business. "Why are you ignoring me?" There was a slight hint of malice in her tone.

Hotaru blinked at her. She waited as if she was mulling things over in her head. "I'm not."

"Yeah you are," Mikan said through gritted teeth. "Ever since that night…" She couldn't get herself to say the night of her party.

Hotaru shrugged. "I'm just busy."

"Liar!" Mikan shouted. More people turned to stare at the two girls and Mikan lowered her voice. She noticed their stares and fidgeting, they were now uncomfortable around her. "You promised me two days ago that you would teach me how to fly."

"I don't recall that."

Mikan felt her eye twitch in response, and she took a step closer to her. Hotaru in turn took a step back. "What are you scared of me now?" She let out a quiet laugh. "God Hotaru! I'm the same person. Nothing is different!" He hands tightened into fists.

Everyone around her looked uncomfortable and acted like she was about to explode and kill them all.

"You promised," Mikan said quietly. "And you never break your promises."

Mikan watched as she saw Hotaru's eyes fill with emotion, but as quickly as it had happened they turned cold. "Find someone else," Hotaru said. "I can't help you." She left without another word.

By the time Mikan finished seething, everyone around her had crept away from their seats and moved as far away from her as they could. She stormed out of the food hall, everyone shied away from her giving her a clear path to the door.

She needed to clear her head, and staying in the temple surrounded by people that looked at her like she was the Devil himself was not conducive to what she needed right now. She retrieved her coat from her room and slipped out the door. She tightened the hood around her head and slumped over, she didn't want anyone to recognize her. Still she wanted to feel normal so she made her way to the market where she could easily blend in with others.

Walking into the market would probably cause some suspicion but she hoped everyone would be too preoccupied with staying warm and keeping to themselves when she arrived. She dragged her feet through what little snow remained on the ground leaving two snaking trails behind her.

Being treated like a pariah was not something Mikan expected when she got wings. Things were great that first day when both her wings were white, but then everything turned south the night of her party. Why did one of her wings turn black? She had never heard of color changing wings before and of all colors black? Why did it have to be black? What did it mean? Was she tainted? Had she done something wrong? Was she dying?

Her heart quickened at the thought of her dying. That couldn't be it. She didn't want to die. What she currently wanted was to learn how to fly already. Sure she might have been a little demanding and rushed into scheduling flying lessons with her friends, but an angel that can't fly isn't really an angel. Why waste the wings, even if one happens to be black? Once she learned to fly maybe she could run away to somewhere secluded and live out the rest of her days in peace.

It sounded like a miserable life actually, but decent considering her other option of being feared for the rest of her life. It was when she was fully camouflaged within the hustle and bustle of the market that she finally began to feel less of a pariah.

Her nose caught whiff of an enticing aroma of freshly baked bread, and she headed in its direction. There's nothing like fresh food to help you get out of a depressive slump. So she ordered a roll from the bakery and sunk her teeth into the warm and flaky goodness. Other customers gave her odd glances, after all she had her hood tight around her head still and moaned slightly into the bread.

"Mikan?" someone asked her.

She quickly swallowed the piece in her mouth and turned away from the voice. "No," she said trying to disguise her voice.

She waited for them to leave her alone, but instead she felt a tug on her hood and her head popped out. She quickly turned around and came face to face with Ruka. She whipped the hood back over her head and pulled it shut so only her eyes were visible.

He stared down at her questioningly. "What are you doing?" he asked.

She looked back in forth before answering. "Nothing," she said.

"Nothing?"

"Fine," she huffed. "I'm hiding."

"Why are you hiding?"

"Everyone's scared of me."

"Scared?"

"Yeah," she peered at him. "Aren't you scared of me?"

She was shocked when he laughed at her. "Why would I be scared of you?"

"You know why," she mumbled.

He pushed her out of the bakery and out into the street. "You're the least frightening person I know." He smiled down at her, and she noticed he carried a bag of bread and what smelled like soup. "Hotaru is scarier than you," he said.

"Yeah right," Mikan waved him off. "She won't even talk to me. She was supposed to teach me how to fly but she's too scared. She can't even look at me."

Ruka frowned. He probably thought Hotaru being scared of Mikan was impossible. She was supposed to be the levelheaded one. "How about I teach you how to fly?" he asked.

Mikan gaped at him.

"Today," he added.

"You'd really do that?" she asked.

"Sure," he said. "I might ask someone for help though if you don't mind."

"Do you think they'll be scared of me?" she asked hesitantly.

A small smile tugged at his lips. "No," he said.

Mikan's mind raced. Ruka was going to teach her how to fly and he wasn't scared of her. It was a good start to getting everyone comfortable around her. She felt the excitement build up in her as Ruka led her through the marketplace. They reached a small little housing unit and Ruka led her inside.

Mikan looked at each door they passed before he stopped at one with the number 4 on it.

"He's been brooding lately, so maybe this will help."

"Who has?" Mikan asked.

"Natsume," he said to her, knocking twice on the door. "It's me," he called to the person on the other side.

How had she been so oblivious? Ruka's slight smile when she asked if his friend would be afraid, she had missed all the signs! Mikan felt her stomach flip as she suddenly remembered the night of her party.

Ruka didn't wait for him to open the door. Instead he turned the knob and pushed the door in. Mikan hastily grabbed the handle and yanked it closed again. Ruka stared down at her curiously.

"Uh," Mikan squeaked out. "I need to tell you something." She leaned against the door as he continued staring down at her. She spoke quickly. "You know that thing that sometimes happens when angels touch another angel's wings?"

He nodded at her.

She gulped before rushing out the rest. "Natsume kind of touched my wings and stuff happened." She looked up at his eyes and noticed they were big. "I felt things," she finished.

Ruka stared shocked at her and she felt the door give way behind her. She fell backwards and felt Natsume grip her arm for a moment to catch her, probably out of instinct, and then he promptly dropped her to the floor.

"What are you doing?" he asked Ruka.

Ruka shook himself out of his shock. "Want to go for a fly?"

Natsume flicked his eyes from Ruka to Mikan.

"Also," Ruka added grinning. "We're going to teach her how to fly."

"Do I even have a choice?" Natsume asked.

Ruka smiled even bigger. "Nope," he said pushing the bag of food into his chest.

Natsume gripped the bag and stepped aside to let them in. He walked over to the kitchen area and started unpacking the food Ruka brought. Ruka helped her up and he too made his way to the kitchen.

Mikan slowly slinked her way into the kitchen after them. She stood off to the side as the two ate their food. Ruka struck up a conversation casually with Natsume and she felt very out of place. She was left to twiddle her thumbs silently in the corner. Her eyes peered everywhere but at the two.

She was staring intently at her shoes when Natsume interrupted her thoughts.

"Are you just going to stand there?" He looked annoyed.

"Ah, sorry," she said clumsily reaching for a chair.

"Actually Natsume," Ruka said. "Can I talk to you alone for a minute?" He looked apologetically at Mikan.

"Right!" she said shooting up to her feet. "I'll just go wait in here," she said, opening the door to a closet. Her face paled. She shut the closet door and quickly chose a different one, not before she noticed signs of amusement on both their faces.

She let out a long sigh once she was safely behind the new door. Curse her nerves. Why was she so tense and what were they secretly talking about anyway? Her eyes scanned the new room and she felt the familiar pulse in her finger. She was in a bedroom, and by the looks of it, it had to be his. She ran her fingers over his sheets. They were soft and the bed looked overwhelmingly comfortable.

His room was unexpectedly tidy, nothing was out of place except for some papers spread out over a desk. The sunlight from the window illuminated them and she was drawn towards them. Upon closer inspection they appeared to be maps of Cloud Alice. She picked one up and noticed that it had been written and drawn completely over. There were lines that looked like paths that led to large red Xs. She wondered what they were for.

She picked up another map that had areas circled instead. There were various letters written in the circles, she wondered what they meant. Another map showed short jagged lines across Cloud Alice that she couldn't make out. She studied the lines closely. One was near the residential area, one near the mountain, one in the valley. Realization dawned on her. These were the locations of shadow attacks, but there were much more documented on this map than she knew about. Lots more. Why was Natsume keeping track of the attacks?

She picked up a smaller list that was tucked underneath the maps. _Persona_ was written across the top in small slanted letters. There were multiple dates and names written, some she recognized, most she didn't following his name. Few were crossed off, she noticed _Ruka Nogi_ was one that was crossed off. This must have been one of Persona's debt lists or something. She scanned the rest of the list and felt her heart sink. There at the very bottom, _Mikan Sakura,_ her name was last. Why was her name there? She wasn't aware of any debts she owed Persona. Persona had to have been joking earlier when he said she owed him for Yuu.

The doorknob rattled, startling her, and the door pushed open to reveal Natsume. She threw the paper back onto the desk and jumped back guiltily. She watched as the traitorous piece of paper slid off the desk and floated to the floor. Looking up, she noticed Natsume narrow his eyes and she couldn't meet his gaze.

She stiffened as he walked towards her, only to pick up the piece of paper she dropped. He placed it back on the desk and reached behind her for a jacket.

"Let's go," he said.

"Right," she said louder than she hoped. She hurriedly left his room and found Ruka buttoning up his jacket. He smiled at her.

"Ready?" he asked and she nodded.

* * *

They were in a clearing. In the summer this clearing would be littered with wild flowers, but instead the flowers were long dead buried beneath the snow.

"Does it have to be so out in the open?" asked Mikan.

Ruka blinked at her. "Well, I figured an open area to feel the wind more would be better for you."

She looked around. She still felt too close to the town, too close to prying eyes. She shifted from foot to foot and watched as Ruka materialized his own wings, beckoning her to as well.

"Um," Mikan said shyly. "Can we go farther away?"

Oh," Ruka said. "What'd you have in mind?"

She looked around. Her eyes swept over the clearing, over Natsume who had his arms crossed, they landed on a familiar mountain. She pointed off into the distance. It was the same mountain she had ran away to when her grandpa had supposedly been taken by the shadows. It was far but more importantly it was far from prying and judging eyes. "Is that all right?" she asked.

Ruka's eyes widened. It was a far distance, she knew it.

"It'd take all day to walk there," Natsume said. Ruka nodded in agreement.

"It'd be perfect!" Mikan tried to convince them. "There's a nice cliff up there and the wind will be perfect up that high." She searched their faces, and only saw looks of disgust. They really didn't want to walk all the way there, especially in the cold. Spoiled angels and their spoiled wings. Then she had a brilliant idea, "You could fly me there," she said making a point to look at Ruka and not Natsume.

Ruka looked a little bit nervous. "I've never flown and carried someone before," he said. "I don't think I'm strong or fast enough. Sorry."

"Come on," she pleaded. "I've seen you fly with him." She pointed to Natsume. "You guys were in complete sync."

Ruka glanced to Natsume, who had a smug expression on his face, causing the blond to chuckle. "He always holds back," Ruka said through laughs and Mikan felt her face fall. "He could carry you easily."

Mikan knew he could do it. He did it before but she really didn't want to be near him. She felt all jittery around him and she wanted to stay as far away from him. She slowly looked to Natsume.

"No," he said harshly before she could even ask.

"We'll walk then," Ruka said shrugging.

She felt bad as they started walking towards the mountain. She was making things unnecessarily more difficult than they needed to be but she just could not accept the fact that she had two different colored wings. She didn't want the judgment, most of all.

Ruka was the one who kept the conversation going while they walked. Natsume hardly spoke up, occasionally he grunted in response. Mikan found her mind drifting to many things: her wings, the cold, flying, her wings again, and Natsume touching her wings.

Mikan looked up at the pale winter sky. She was getting nervous. What if she failed at flying? Was she doomed to walk for the rest of her life? She was probably the most dysfunctional angel out there.

They had been walking for an hour before Natsume finally spoke up. "Christ," she heard him say. He stopped suddenly and stalked up to her. "Ruka, let's go," he said materializing his wings. He scooped her up quickly before he took off flying towards the mountain.

He deposited her roughly on the hard ground. She was a little disoriented and her heart raced. The flight up was rough. She had felt very unsecure in his arms, his grip had been loose.

"What was that for?" she spat in his face as Ruka landed gracefully on his feet next to her.

He lit some scattered brush on fire. "Ruka's freezing and I don't have time for your insecurities," he said.

She felt herself warm with anger. She desperately wanted to give him a snappy retort but her eyes landed on Ruka. He did look cold even though he insisted he wasn't. She turned to Ruka and apologized to him.

"It's fine," he said warming his hands by the fire. "Honestly, Natsume. I was okay." He turned towards her. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" she asked, caught off guard.

"You're just not your usual self," he said.

"I just—" She raked her brain for an appropriate response. She caught his gaze and had to look away. She couldn't admit to him that she felt targeted and like something impure. Her eyes fell on Natsume, his wings were out. Instantly, she felt ashamed. She was in the presence of someone that was constantly degraded for the color of his wings, yet he never let it affect him. In a way it made him stronger and more determined. She put on a smile. "I'm sorry," she said turning to Ruka. "I was just nervous to fly. I'm ready now."

He smiled back. "All right. Let's get started," he said.

"Okay," she said.

The two stood in front of her and Mikan felt like she was suddenly going to regret this.

"Let's see them," Ruka said.

She blinked for a moment and looked to the ground before she felt for the tug and popped out her wings. From the corner of her eyes she saw the white of the feathers and then black. Her eyes flashed up expecting the worst. She was shocked to see Ruka grinning wide. Natsume remained expressionless.

"They look good," Ruka said. "And strong. How do they feel?"

"Stiff," she replied.

"Stiff? Why stiff?"

She shrugged.

Ruka frowned. "When was the last time you had them out?" he asked.

She bit her lip, suddenly very aware of a pair of crimson eyes on her. "The night of my party," she quietly told him.

"You should try to stretch them every day," Ruka suggested and she nodded.

She tried stretching them then. The sensation was odd as she felt them ruffle under her command.

"Okay," Ruka said. "Let's see. Try moving them around. Get a good feel of them."

She stared back and tried moving them. She had no idea what she was doing and by the looks on their faces she was making a fool of herself. She tried wiggling her back, like Koko once told her. Nothing happened. She probably looked like an idiot.

"All right, something different then," Ruka said. "Natsume, give her some wind, and Mikan try to catch it."

She gawked at Ruka. That sounded like an awful idea. Before she could protest, Natsume flapped his wings once and the gust caught on her wings, lifted her up and back momentarily before she fell flat on her back. She shot up and growled at a smirking Natsume.

"Eh, bad idea then. Okay, try flapping them again," Ruka suggested. He flapped his gently to show her how. "It's all in the shoulders."

She held her breath thinking it would help. She flexed the muscles in her back and felt her wings move back and then forward. The movement felt strongly forced.

"Why don't we just push her off a cliff?" Natsume suggested.

Ruka's eyes flashed to Natsume's. "What?"

"Maybe instincts will take over," he said through gritted teeth.

"I'm not letting you push me off a cliff," Mikan cried.

"That's not going to happen," Ruka said reassuring her. "We just need to think harder." His face scrunched up in concentration before he sighed and looked to Natsume.

"Get her closer to the edge," Natsume said to Ruka.

Ruka's eyes narrowed. "We're not pushing her off."

"She needs more direct wind," he said.

Ruka's eyes widened in understanding and he motioned for her to step closer to the edge. She didn't exactly like whatever Natsume was thinking. She was also shocked he offered up his own advice. It didn't really seem like a Natsume-like thing to do. She cast a hesitant glance at Ruka.

"He's the best flyer I know. Trust him," he said shrugging.

Ruka stepped off to the side as she peered over the cliff and out into the distance. The field stretched out for miles in front of her. The small river below was frozen over. She took a deep breath and held it as her pulse accelerated. The wind was stronger and she felt like it could push her over at any moment. Natsume stepped up next to her and she felt squeamish under his gaze.

"You're too tense," he said.

Her eyes flicked to his. Tense. Of course she was tense. She was standing on the edge of a cliff next to him. The two were a recipe for a disaster.

"Breathe," he said shocking her.

"I don't need breathing exercises right now," she said through gritted teeth.

Annoyance flickered in his eyes and he placed his hand on her lower back causing her to tense even more. "Breathe," he repeated.

Blindingly aware of the pressure on her back from his hand she took a deep breath.

"Again," he said and she breathed again. "Feel the air. Feel the wind on your face, on your wings."

She closed her eyes and felt as the wind wrapped around every part of her body. It rolled off her.

"Feel the ground beneath your feet," he continued and she felt the pressure of the ground meeting her feet. "Lifting you up, pushing you forward. Feel the wind."

She found herself relaxing. His voice was oddly soothing.

"Feel its strength," he breathed. "Pumping through your veins and your wings. Traveling through every nerve in your body. It will make you weightless."

She felt it. The wind. It was making her weightless. She felt it caress her wings.

"Now fly," he said. The pressure on her back grew and she felt herself fall forward. The wind coursed through her wings and body. She felt herself cut through it. Her eyes snapped open as she fell. The jerk pushed her. He literally pushed her off a cliff and now she was falling, not flying.

She jerked herself upwards and she felt her wings catch. With a push she found herself shooting upwards. Her eyes narrowed as she made a beeline for him. He was hovering now in the air alongside Ruka. His attention was all on Ruka. She pushed herself forward once more to gain momentum before she caught him off guard and tackled him around the waist. The two fell skidding to the ground roughly. She heard him groan on impact. She herself was slightly winded.

She ended up on top straddling him. She pinned him down and glared at him. He groaned again before his eyes flashed open and stared up at her in shock.

"You pushed me off a cliff!" she yelled.

His eyes narrowed. "It worked didn't it?"

She continued glaring at him, her breathing was rapid. They continued glaring at each other until a breathless Ruka landed next to them. He immediately burst out laughing and Mikan looked questioningly at him.

"Uh, Ruka?" she asked.

He continued laughing, clutching his stomach. "Sorry," he said through laughs. "I've never seen him caught off guard like that." He wiped some tears from his eyes. "Natsume, you should have seen your face."

Mikan felt herself smile and she grinned smugly down at Natsume. His eye twitched slightly and he shoved her off of him. He stood and brushed the dirt off his clothes.

"I teach you how to fly, and that's the thanks I get?" he scoffed.

She stood, still smiling. Turning to Ruka she said, "I can't wait to tell everyone I flew! And that I bested Natsume."

"Congratulations," Ruka said.

She excitedly lifted herself into the air and floated near him. Beaming, she flew a bit away from them. "I should head home," she called. "Thanks for everything! Come by the temple sometime and I can treat you guys."

The wind rushed through her and carried her as she threw herself off the cliff into the horizon. She glided for a moment, soaking in the sensation of flying and with a push she headed home.


	17. Mistaken Intentions

**Chapter Seventeen: Mistaken Intentions**

"You seem to have a lot on your mind lately."

Mikan sighed. She was sitting in her grandpa's office helping him out for the day, something she hadn't done in a long time. She did have a lot on her mind, and it was incredibly difficult to keep track of everything. The list of things on her mind went on and on. It started with Hotaru still giving her the cold shoulder. Other items included a certain black angel she couldn't figure out, the ever growing presence that something was still going on with the shadow attacks, and Persona's end game.

"Sorry Grandpa," she said. "This whole two colored wing thing is just weird." She offered it up as it was the easiest one for her to talk about. There was no way she was going to discuss Persona with him because he would certainly lock her up for her own protection. Then there was Natsume, but she definitely wasn't going to talk boys with him.

"That coming from you is definitely interesting." Her grandpa leaned back in his chair and took a long sip of his tea.

She gripped her cup of tea harder in her hands. "Why do you say that?" she asked.

"You never struck me as someone who cared about the color of one's wings."

She shrugged. She had no reason to care before she had wings, but now things were different.

"I wonder," he said thinking. "What's changed?"

She pointed to herself. "I have."

He looked over at her. His eyes were calculating. It always bothered her when they turned that way. "You are still the same Mikan to me."

Groaning, she rolled her eyes. Typical Grandpa. He was obligated to say that by being her caretaker.

"No, I'm not." She stood up from her chair and materialized her wings.

He frowned. "You're right," he said easily.

She stood stunned for a moment. That was weird. Grandparents are supposed to be the ever loving and ever supporting type. "Hold on," Mikan started, "aren't you supposed to be making me feel better? You know, telling me I'm normal?" She motioned to herself.

He pondered for a long moment. "Why do you care about the color of your wings?"

Why? She rolled her eyes in frustration. "One's black," she mumbled.

"So?"

"So?" Irritation filled leaked from every crevice of her body. "Everyone is scared of me!"

"They're scared of you because you are giving them a reason to be scared of you."

"What?" She felt defeated and confused. "No, I'm not," she mumbled.

He stood and met her in the center of the room. Two wrinkled hands placed themselves on her shoulders. "You are the same as me, as Hotaru. You are an angel with two great wings. That is all."

Except one's black.

As if he read her thoughts, he continued on. "Color does not matter, you know that." He motioned to her black wing. "Think about your friends. How do you define them? Not by the color of their wings but by their strengths and faults."

She gulped. That was true. She never really considered the color of their wings before. Her Grandpa was right, she was being foolish and blind. Was she really willing to ruin lifelong friendships over the color of one of her wings? It didn't change her. Inside she was the same cheerful, lovable girl they grew up with. She just had to remind them.

She wanted to find them desperately and just give them a hug. She missed them so much, laughing and gossiping with them. She excused herself from her grandpa and went to look for them. Leave it to Grandpa to drop the logic bomb on her. She would seriously have to thank him later by maybe picking up a few extra chores.

She found Tsubasa and Misaki joking around in an unused classroom. Nonoko and Anna were in the kitchen and Hotaru, she knew exactly where she would be. She dragged them all to the library not explaining her sudden haste and need for them. They all followed her silently.

Piles of books littered the table she was using. Mikan's eyes went directly to Hotaru's. Mikan turned around and motioned for the shocked group behind her to stop. They looked warily around the library. Turning back to the table, she noticed Ruka sitting slightly away from Hotaru. He straightened up from what she figured was a talking position and he smiled at her. She wondered why he was there.

Blinking, she focused her eyes back onto Hotaru. She noticed her face was contorted deep in thought. Her eyes flashed to Mikan's and Mikan felt a surge of energy.

"I need to talk to you," she said. "All of you." She turned around and eyed all her friends behind her. They all stared back and she felt herself get nervous. Acceptance never came easy though.

"I am still me," she began. "I'm still Mikan. I'm still the clumsy girl you guys have always known, the one that cries a lot, and laughs with you." She felt tears well up in her eyes. "I want my friends back. I would do anything to have you guys back. I'm sorry, so sorry for scaring you all. For anything dumb that I have done this year. But I am me. Nothing's changed. I'm still…" A sob interrupted her.

The chair Hotaru was sitting in made a scraping noise as it was suddenly pushed back. Hotaru moved to stand in front of her, tears glistened in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "Sorry Mikan, I'm sorry," she said louder. She threw her arms around her and the two fell into a heap of tears on the floor. Relief flooded through Mikan as Hotaru hugged her. They cried and the others joined them. Tsubasa pulled Mikan into an embrace next and Misaki sandwiched her between them. Anna and Nonoko hugged her tightly after.

The group all stood together, their tears had long been exhausted. Hotaru turned to Mikan now.

"Do you still want me to teach you how to fly?" she asked.

"Oh!" Mikan said. "I know how to fly actually." Hotaru's eyes narrowed and Mikan quickly explained. "Ruka and Natsume taught me."

Hotaru icily glared at Ruka and he stiffened. "Ah. I really didn't do anything," he said shying away from her gaze. "Natsume was the one who ultimately got her to fly." Wrong answer. More ice daggers flew from Hotaru's eyes.

Mikan rushed to Ruka's defense ensuring Hotaru that everything went swimmingly, of course she left out the part where Natsume pushed her off a cliff. There was no point in adding more fuel to the fire of distrust that Hotaru had for Natsume. Mikan turned to Ruka once more and asked, "What are you doing here?"

He flashed her a smile. "You said to stop by."

She brightened. "Oh yeah! Is he, uh, here too?"

"Just me," he said. She noticed his eyes flashed with something. "So what's on the agenda for today?"

She turned to her friends. She asked them if they had any ideas and they all shrugged. "How about we all make dinner together?" she offered.

Everyone seemed to like the idea and they set off for the kitchen. Mikan however pulled Ruka to the side before they left the library. She had finally placed the emotion that had flashed through his eyes earlier. It was worry.

"Where is he?" she asked in hushed tones.

More worry crossed his face.

"Is he with Persona?" she asked.

Ruka hung his head and shook it. "Is it that obvious?" he asked.

She gave him a weak smile. "Is he okay?"

"I don't know," he whispered.

She gulped. "I want to see him." His eyes questioned her and she shrugged. "I need to thank him."

"He might not come," he said.

She furrowed her brow. "Why not?"

"He's confused."

"About what?"

He let out a single chuckle. "You," he said.

Her heart skipped a beat. "Me? Why me?"

His expression changed to one of sadness. "We should get going. Everyone is probably waiting." She narrowed her eyes at his avoidance. He moved to walk out of the library and she followed. He paused and mulled something over for a moment, before he whispered quietly, "I'll see what I can do."

* * *

Whatever Ruka said he was going to do took two weeks. She didn't see him again until she walked into the library one day where she found him, Yoichi, and Hotaru huddled around a table. Mikan frowned when she saw them. She felt like they were spending a lot of time together, always huddled and talking in whispers.

"Hey!" Mikan called. "You on kid patrol today?" she asked motioning to Yoichi. The demon child raised his head from his book and glared at her.

"Hey," Ruka said back.

"What brings you by on this bitterly cold winter day?" Mikan asked.

"Natsume's back."

"Really?" Mikan asked, trying to hide her excitement.

"Yeah," he said. He hesitated for a moment, not sure if he should continue on. "He's in the courtyard." She felt herself straighten up. He was here? Now? She felt her finger pulse and she tried to shake it away. "I should warn you though," Ruka said suddenly. "Persona had him running around for two weeks. He's not in a good mood."

Mikan shrugged. "I'll take my chances," she called back over her shoulder.

She decided to fly to the courtyard. She found him standing by the fountain looking off into the distance. An idea flashed into her head and she flew as quietly as she could. She glided down on to the top of the statue's head and unsteadily stood on it. She was careful not to attract his attention. She laughed silently to herself. She had successfully recreated their first encounter.

"Well isn't this familiar?" she called down to him, a smirk on her lips.

He turned slowly to her, his expression was blank. He looked the same, except a healing scratch now rested above one of his eyebrows.

"You're not very stealthy," he said. "I could hear you from a mile away."

Her eye twitched in irritation and she jumped down from the fountain's head. She had to steady herself as she landed unevenly. "You're a hard guy to track down," she said casually. His eyes narrowed. He probably liked it that way, she thought. "How'd you get that scratch?" she asked changing the subject.

Suddenly he smirked, catching her off guard, and he shrugged. "I can't remember her name."

Mikan felt her face mirror one of disgust which caused him to smirk more. "You're lying," she challenged. She was positive that the scratch didn't come from another girl. Still she couldn't help imagining some floozy draping herself over him.

She crept up to him and stared him point blank in the face. Irritation shown on his face and she peered harder.

"What do you want?" he asked roughly.

He was always so irritable and moody. That was going to have to change. "You were supposed to stop by ages ago."

His eyes narrowed. "I was busy."

"Uh-huh," she said. She took in his appearance. All black like usual. It fit his mood. A smile tugged on her lips, causing him to glare at her. He turned to leave. Their interaction was clearly over for him.

"Hold on!" she called out. Her hand found his jacket sleeve and she tugged him back into the conversation. "I think I finally have you all figured out," she said confidently. The wind picked up at that moment and whipped her hair in her face. When she eventually tucked her hair away she noticed his face remained impassive, his arms were now crossed. "You are shrouded in darkness," she said. "Everything you do is surrounded by darkness, your thoughts, feelings, and actions." It sounded dumb aloud but in her head it had sounded normal and intelligent. She thought she had a point but her scripted thoughts seemed to become jumbled.

He stared at her. "What?" It was the only appropriate question.

"You're just so guarded," Mikan said. "It was hard to figure you out but I know what you need most."

"And what exactly is it that I need?"

Carefully she reached into her pocket and took out a single white feather. It was the one she had plucked earlier when she first discovered her wings and it shined just a little bit brighter than her current ones. She admired it for a moment before she held it out for him. A questioning look fell across his face. "Take it," she said. "Now you will always have some light in your life."

His eyes narrowed more before he warily look it from her fingers. He looked at it for a long moment before he met her sparkling eyes. "I don't even like you," he said slowly.

Mikan blanked. She felt her eye twitch in irritation. "What? Why does that even matter?" she cried. "Never mind, that's not the point. The point is that you don't have to be surrounded by this darkness. Now you have some light." She gestured to her feather between his fingers.

Natsume continued staring at the feather and Mikan felt herself squirm. "Okay, well I'm going to go now, so bye." She turned and ran back to the temple. Not looking back.

What the hell kind of response was that anyway? _I don't even like you._ Okay fine. It's not like she confessed her love. She just gave him a white feather. It was done in good faith, right? She didn't really have any expectations but it definitely wasn't that. Actually a thanks would have been nice. She let the thought roll around in her head before she shoved it deep in a vault along with her frustrations with him.

Even if he did want her, so what? She didn't want him right? He was rude and rash. And impossible to figure out. She ran all the way back to the library where she startled Ruka and Hotaru silently reading.

"What's with you?" Hotaru asked. "Your face looks dumb."

Mikan tried to ignore the diss. Still annoyance was present in her glare. "Natsume," she said looking at Ruka.

"Oh," Hotaru commented, suddenly disinterested she returned her attention back to her book.

"He was totally rude. I was only trying to be nice."

"What happened?" Ruka asked.

"I gave him one of my feathers so he—" she started.

"What?" Hotaru interrupted.

"Yeah," she continued, ignoring Ruka's sudden choking. "I just thought he could use some light in his life but instead he—"

"Mikan," Hotaru said gravely.

She stopped talking and narrowed her eyes at her best friend. "What?" she asked, noticing Ruka's large eyes.

"You gave him one of your feathers?" Ruka asked.

"Yes."

"Why do you not know this?" Hotaru asked.

"Not know what?" Mikan countered.

Hotaru sighed. "Giving another angel one of your feathers is like a proposal. A confession of love."

Mikan's mind went blank as Ruka and Hotaru stared at her. The wheels in her brain finally clicked. A proposal. A confession. Love.

"WHAT?" she screamed and ran out the library. She had to find him, and explain to him. Suddenly his response made so much more sense. _I don't even like you._ She had mistakenly proposed or confessed. Her pulse quickened as she thought and ran. She had to reach him. Why didn't anyone ever tell her these things?

When she got to the courtyard he and her feather were nowhere to be seen. She searched around frantically before finally giving up. She just had to trust that he would realize what she meant behind the whole thing. Besides, how could she even like such a guy?


	18. Into the Maze

**Chapter Eighteen: Into the Maze**

The birds were exceptionally noisy outside of Mikan's room. The sun was barely peeking over the horizon and they were chirping up a storm. Frustrated, Mikan threw the covers from her bed and stumbled around in the pale morning light. The night had not been well to her. Her sleep was restless and her dreams were taunting.

One particular dream that really rattled her was one where her wings fell off like sludge and leathery bat-like wings grew to replace them. The growth of the new wings always shocked her awake. Regardless of her unsettling dreams, she was learning how to cope with a single black wing. Things with her friends had gone back to normal. Sometimes she felt them tense whenever she popped her wings out. It was the others that really bothered her. The strangers. The constant judgment and fear.

A little girl had actually ran screaming from her when she revealed her wings to help the child. That truly shocked her and made her gut stir. It hurt. She found herself constantly reminded of how another black angel must have felt all the time. No wonder he had such a guarded exterior. Being treated like the plague would do that to someone. She was only half of an abomination but she still empathized with him.

She still couldn't believe how blind to traditions she had been. Giving her feather away like that. It was so embarrassing. She had even gone as far as cornering Ruka and demanding that he explain the situation to Natsume. Ruka assured her he would explain to him what she meant. When she ran into Ruka later he had told her Natsume said he lost the feather anyway, so she had nothing to worry about. Wanting to avoid any more angel tradition mishaps that she might not know of she had demanded that her friends educate her in all things tradition.

Turns out there was quite a lot she didn't know about wings. The large book she frequented didn't mention all the social traditions around having wings. She felt like she had enough knowledge now though to avoid any other mishaps.

The sun was creeping up ever so slowly this winter day. In the time it took Mikan to dress and head out for a walk to cool her mind it had barely moved. A light snow was falling and she childishly tried to catch some flakes on her tongue. She found herself walking around aimlessly. There was no work for her in the temple today so she had the whole day to herself.

A mother singing silently singing to her child caught her attention. A little girl was cradled in her arms and a little boy no more than three was pouting next to her leg. They were up early. The baby girl must not have been able to sleep. The little boy's pout kind of reminded her of Natsume. It was his eyes, they were narrowed in at his baby sister. She was reminded of how often he glared at her.

She nodded to the mother and kept walking. She had no siblings so she had no idea what it was like. The sun was higher now as it bathed the ground in fresh light. She watched as the light crept across the ground. Her eyes followed it to a familiar place. The sun was just high enough to illuminate the crack in the ground. It felt like it was yesterday when Yoichi had been taken.

The place gave her chills. She had not been back here since that day. She walked over and peered down. It was too dark to see anything and she figured it must be deep.

"Be careful darling," a voice said. "You don't want to fall. Who knows what's down there." It was the mother and her two children.

Mikan thanked her for her concern and watched as they walked away. Before she left herself she took another look down the crack. The little girl let out a loud cry and Mikan watched as the mom tried to silence her tears. She wished she could help the little girl, but instead she took a final peek at the crack.

It must have been the mother and her two children that prompted her sudden flashback to Ruka telling her about Natsume and his little sister. Persona was keeping her captive and he had been searching relentlessly for her to no avail. Ruka had said he'd practically been everywhere imaginable and that he flies the sky often looking for any trace. The sky. She looked harder at the crack and a strange feeling danced in Mikan's stomach. She wasn't sure how she knew but she knew Aoi wasn't in the sky. No. She was underground.

* * *

She had inexplainably rushed to his place. It was still really early in the morning and she stood outside in the cold air staring at the exterior of his housing unit. Her breathing was hard, she had flown fast to get here. With a final deep breath she ran inside and found his door.

She pounded frantically on it probably waking up his neighbors as well. When she heard the lock click out of place she barged right in. "I need to talk to you." She spoke quickly, her words were rushed and sloppy due to her ragged breathing. "I was out on a walk and I ran into this mother with her two children. The girl was crying and distracting, but it triggered something and I had a thought." She finally looked up at him. He stood dazed, sleep was apparent in all his features: his tousled hair, glazed over eyes, pajama pants, only pants she noticed. "Uh." She had lost her train of thought.

Her silence must have shaken him from his sleepiness because he suddenly became more aware. His eyes narrowed and his posture straightened. "I got back four hours ago, this better be important."

Blinking, she gathered her composure. "Yes," she said rushing into his bedroom. She noticed the sheets tossed messily on his bed before she bee lined for his desk. She ruffled around in the familiar maps before she pulled out the one with all the cracks drawn on it.

She turned to find him hovering dangerously close to her. "You've looked everywhere for your sister, right?" He nodded. "Okay," she took a deep breath. "Did you look underground?" He leaned over the desk and pinned the map down with his hands, he was beginning to see where she was going with this. "I don't exactly know how Persona is involved in all this but…" She watched his face. Emotions overcame him and Mikan took in the rare sight. He looked hopeful as his eyes scanned the map back and forth. "What if there are tunnels beneath all these cracks? And he's been using them somehow?"

He turned. "I can't believe I never thought of this."

"It's just a matter of narrowing them down," Mikan whispered.

He pointed to one that was further away than the rest. "This one."

"How do you know?" she asked.

"It's the oldest one. It's overgrown. It has to be it." He picked up a bag and started rummaging around in his room for various items.

"Okay," Mikan said trying to take in all the information. "I'm going with you."

"No."

"Yes," she said harshly. "You can't go alone. It could be dangerous."

He stared at her. His expression itself emanated the words "it's me," as if challenging the potential danger.

"You're not invincible," she said hotly.

"More than you," he retorted.

"You should take people with you. You'll cover more ground."

"Or they'll get in the way."

A knock interrupted her response. Who else was crazy enough to disturb someone as early as she had? Natsume was gritting his teeth as the knocking continued.

"Yo, Natsume. Open up!" a voice demanded. She didn't know it.

"Reo," Natsume said scowling.

"Who's that?" Mikan whispered.

As the impatient knocking continued Natsume suddenly pushed her to a corner of his room. "Do not say anything. Do not come out of this room. Do not make a single noise. No matter what."

She nodded and released the breath of air she had held when he suddenly cornered her. She watched him leave and close the door behind him. The front door creaked open. She heard them talking.

"What took you so long?" Reo asked. "You got a girl in there or something?"

"No," Natsume replied. "It's been four hours. What does he need now?"

"You know Persona," Reo said. "He doesn't tell me anything."

"Because you follow him blindly."

"You know," Reo growled. "Just because you're Persona's favorite doesn't mean I can't beat you to a pulp." Mikan heard scuffling and a grunt. Reo must have attacked Natsume and she struggled to stop herself from going out and seeing if he was okay.

"Persona wants you to track someone down and bring him to him," Reo spat out.

"Who?" Natsume asked.

Mikan didn't recognize the name.

"Persona can't get him himself?" Natsume asked.

Reo laughed a throaty laugh. "That's grunt work. Besides, Persona thinks you've been distracted lately. He sees this as a challenge and as a way to refocus your priorities."

"Is that all?" Natsume eventually asked.

"No," Reo spat. "Persona says if you don't go willingly then I have full authority to make you. So what'll it be? Will you go obediently or do I have to make you?"

A long moment passed before Natsume spoke. "I always go don't I?"

"Yes," Reo replied.

"Fine," Natsume said. "You can go now."

"You know," Mikan heard Reo say. "If you didn't have that obnoxious fire power you would be obeying my every command."

She heard footsteps head towards Natsume's door and she started to panic. She crept down and hid in the cover of the bed.

"I need a shower," Natsume said. "You can see yourself out."

Mikan's heart accelerated for some reason. Reo seemed to take forever to leave. With a resounding slam the front door had finally closed and Natsume opened his bedroom door.

Mikan removed herself from her hiding space. "He sounds charming."

Natsume sat down roughly on his bed, his hands combed through his hair before he slammed one down and cursed.

"I should go," she decided.

"You can't," he said lying back on his bed. "He'll be waiting outside for a bit."

"Oh?" She didn't know what to say.

A sigh escaped him. "He has the ability to command people. No matter what, they obey him."

His explanation of Reo made her gulp. He seemed like a terrible person to cross. "Has he ever used his ability on you?"

"Once," he said. "He learned his lesson."

"I see." Mikan shuffled awkwardly on her feet. "You're going to go then? Do what Persona wants?"

"Yes." He stood and walked towards his bathroom. He hesitated before he closed the door to his bathroom. "I'll only be a moment."

She bounced on her heels waiting before she eventually sat on his bed. Exhaustion overcame her so she brought her legs to her chest and curled into the smallest ball possible. The patter of water from his shower was the only noise she heard.

A gentle nudge stirred her from her drifting off. Natsume stood above her, dressed and clean. Mikan blinked up at him. She hadn't heard him leave the bathroom or get dressed, had she really dozed off?

"Go home and stay there," he said. "I'll find you later. Be ready to go."

Mikan stared up at him. Did he just say? He did. He was letting her come with him to find Aoi. She jumped from his bed and beamed at him. She noticed he almost looked like he wanted to take back his statement but she would never let him.

She followed him out the door and into the street. The streets were empty. He turned to take off in the opposite direction of her and she tugged at his jacket sleeve to get his attention. "Be careful," she whispered.

His face looked fragile as he turned again and took off. Turning the opposite direction she headed for home. A lone figure stepped out of an alleyway and purposefully blocked her path, he stopped her in her tracks and smirked at her.

"Hello," he cooed. That voice. It was unmistakably the same voice. Reo's. Natsume was right, he had waited, much longer than he had thought.

Mikan gulped.

"Tell me your name," Reo demanded.

An unusual sense of compulsion clouded her mind. "Mikan," she said automatically. Her mind cleared and quickly she covered her hands to her mouth. This was his ability. It was forceful and she had no way to fight it. It was impossible.

"Mi-kan," he repeated. "So Natsume did have company, huh?"

This time there was no feeling of compulsion. It was just a question which she didn't feel like answering. "I'm sorry, I don't know you," she lied.

He _tsked_ at her. "No, no Mikan. Now tell me. What business did you have with Natsume so early in the morning?"

Her mouth responded before her brain could even register. "I needed to talk to him."

"I see," he said. "Tell me, what did you two talk about?"

The words spilled from her mouth. "I told him I was out on a walk and I ran into this mother with her two children. The girl was crying and distracting—"

Disgusted Reo snapped at her. "Enough."

Mikan suppressed a sigh of relief. He had stopped her just in time. The next sentence surely would have been about Aoi.

Reo glared at her. "You're useless," he snarled. "Go home."

Mikan obeyed, stepping around him. Either she was truly useless or Reo was an idiot. She hoped for the latter. His frustrations had gotten the better of him letting her escape before anything terrible had happened.

"Oh Mikan!" Reo called over his shoulder. "I wouldn't expect him to come back in one piece," he said before laughing. Mikan tried to hide her reaction from him, but it was hard to mask the worry.

Mikan felt her stomach drop and with each step she took closer to the temple she grew more and more worried. It was as if there was a constant pair of eyes on her that she couldn't place. A loud resounding crack echoed through the air and a slight rumble of the ground followed. Another attack. The crack had stopped her sprint, but it was her thoughts that made her turn around. It was far away but it had come from behind her. She was sure of it.

She leapt into the air. Her wings caught the wind and she hovered high enough over the shops and houses to see off into the distance. Another angel was flying in the direction the crack had come from. It was Reo. The jerk had stopped her from following, her subconscious was telling her she couldn't for some reason. She had to go home. Still she had a feeling that Natsume was over there. That was the direction he had turned down. But something was stopping her, no not something. Someone. Reo again.

Why did Reo say what he did about Natsume? It was as if he knew Natsume was going into a fight somewhere. To a shadow attack. No. How could he possibly know when a shadow attack would happen? There's no way. Those things have twisted child-like minds of their own. Mikan's mind raced. Reo could make others obey him but was it limited to angels? If there was some possibility that he could manipulate the shadows and that he was the puppet master behind all of this she had to tell someone.

The only issue was his motivation. What was the point behind all of it? Surely it wasn't just because he spited Natsume. She flew the rest of the way back to the temple. She wanted to run her idea by Hotaru, besides Hotaru had said she had dealt with him in the past so maybe she had some idea. After meeting Reo, Mikan was beginning to wonder exactly how she and Ruka had dealt with him.

Later when Mikan had found Hotaru and explained her theory to her she was only met with annoyance. She left out the part where Reo threatened Natsume's well-being.

"He's not in charge of the attacks," Hotaru said plainly.

"But how do you know?" Mikan countered.

Hotaru gave Mikan her signature annoyed look. "He's not smart enough to be behind it all."

"Then who is?" Mikan asked frustrated.

"I don't think anyone is," Hotaru explained. "They just exist. Like another species."

Mikan stared. Another species? What like rabbits? That was the stupidest thing she had ever heard of. "Sure," she mumbled to her friend.

"Don't worry about it." Hotaru shrugged her off and excused herself. She had typical Hotaru business to tend to. "You look awful, get some sleep."

It was the middle of the day and she was hyped up on adrenaline. There's no way sleeping was on the schedule, and Natsume still hadn't come for her. She tried distracting herself in the library, the kitchen, and she even joined Tsubasa in pranking Misaki but still her mind wandered to Reo and to Natsume. She had an awful feeling that this attack was directed towards him. She could only hope that he was all right and uninjured. She expected Reo and Persona's task to take him only a few hours tops, not the whole day.

The moon was now up in the sky and she found herself pacing in her room. A heavy snow was falling outside and she felt like it was weighing down her mood. Maybe he was just caught up in the snow. Maybe he had to unexpectedly take care of Yoichi. Maybe he really didn't want her to come. Yeah that was it. The other possibilities were not possible. He couldn't be hurt, trapped or worse dead.

She needed reassurance from someone anyone really but everyone has been long gone or sleeping peacefully. It was so late and the only explanation was that something terrible had happened to him. Every little creak of the floor and every noise set her off. The thought that she would be next was lingering. Certainly someone would come for her now, especially since Reo saw them together.

She threw herself on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Pale moonlight danced unceremoniously above her. Her body felt fatigued. The previous night's nightmares and that morning's early restlessness were finally taking its toll on her body. Only for a moment, she closed her eyes.

That moment turned into sleep.

She was abruptly awoken by a fumbling noise on her balcony. The moonlight was gone and her eyes just saw black. Someone was outside her window and her heart hammered. As the intruder made their way into her room she reached for something to defend herself with. Her fingers grasped around the slender vase on her nightstand and she stood to meet the intruder. Was it Reo?

She was perched ready to strike when the wick of the candle on her dresser caught fire. Familiar characteristics caught her eye. The glimmer of an ear cuff, a shift in movement, red eyes. The vase she grasped to defend herself fell to the floor with a loud clunk.

"Oh God," she murmured. He was alive. She closed the distance between them and threw her arms around him. He had half melted snowflakes everywhere, on his jacket, in his hair, and his wings. They felt cool against her bare skin. He stood paralyzed by her embrace.

Mikan felt his arms shift briefly before they too tightened around her. The quietest of sighs escaped his lips. "You're okay," he whispered.

Puzzlement was apparent on her face. "Of course I am," she whispered back into his chest.

He pulled her away from him and she felt a pang of disappointment. She had liked the embrace. "Reo said some things…" he said trailing off.

Mikan cocked her head at him. It looked like Natsume was showing worry. "Whatever it was," she began, "I'm fine. He didn't do anything to me. I promise." She waited nervously as he stared at her not saying anything. A familiar fluttering filled her stomach.

His eyes were striking in that moment and he was beautiful to her in every way, his tousled hair, his contoured jaw, his shoulders and hands. The rise and fall of his chest. Then tears choked her eyes. She wanted to be embraced by him again. She ached for it, for his touch, and his warmth. She felt so small in that moment as his eyes fought some internal battle.

It was as if he had heard her silent prayers for he closed the gap between them and ever so lightly he brushed his lips against hers. The sensation was like a feather, his lips were hardly on hers, just slightly touching like he was testing the waters. It was quiet, and Mikan reacted violently to the heat of his lips. They radiated it, everything about him radiated like the fire that he could control.

She needed more. She crushed her own lips to his and her body followed. Her hands snaked up his arms, his torso, around his back. The kiss turned hungry. She felt his arms pull her closer and she felt the fire within her take over. It was out of control. One hand curled around his back into something soft and the other was at his neck. A quiet gasp escaped him allowing the kiss to deepen and she felt his grip tighten around her waist.

The pressure of his lips on hers eased and the kiss turned sensual. She became aware of his hands moving to cradle her face. Then it was over. He pulled away suddenly, breathing deeply.

He rested his forehead against hers gently. His voice was barely audible, and it wavered slightly. "Your touch," he breathed. "It's overwhelming."

Her mind was clouded and she blinked rapidly trying to ground herself once more. He said her touch was overwhelming. She flexed her fingers, one hand was still at his neck and the other gripped something soft. Shock crossed her face as she spread out her hand over his black feathers. He had never tucked away his wings. Somehow during all that intensity she had grabbed them. Heat rushed to her cheeks as she realized the implications. She had transferred her feelings onto him while they kissed. Her pulse quickened. God she was mortified.

When she finally met his eyes they were deep pools of emotion. Her heart thrummed loudly in her chest and the embarrassment was deafening. His breathing had regained composure and a small smirk formed on his lips when she finally removed her hand from his wings.

She wanted nothing more than to feel his lips on hers again. Where was this crazy hormonal girl coming from anyway? She fidgeted in her spot, they were still really close.

She racked her brain for something to say. Anything. Anything at all. "Um. You should get some sleep," she gestured to her bed. "You look tired."

His wings vanished and she waited for him to say or do something. Instead of going to her bed though, he leaned against the wall and slumped down to sit against it. "You can take it," he said closing his eyes.

She blinked down at him. Surely he wasn't going to sleep sitting on the floor. She waited for a minute before exhaustion overcame her and she found herself lying on her bed. She stared at the ceiling again like she had done earlier in the night. This time the moonlight didn't dance. She turned to her side and tried to sleep.

She was still awake when she heard him move from his position on the floor some time later. The bed creaked under his weight as he lay down in the spot next to her and they both let sleep overtake them.


	19. Maze of Feathers

**Chapter Nineteen: Maze of Feathers**

When Mikan woke up the next morning she found the space next to her empty and she caught herself frowning. The side he slept on looked as if it hadn't even been touched and she started wondering if it had all been a dream. It couldn't have been a dream though. She distinctively remembered the heat his from his body next to hers.

She removed herself from her bed and went to the circular mirror hanging on the wall. Her reflection stared back at her. It was early, the sun crept in through the balcony and everything was eerily quiet. With a deep breath she traced her lips with her fingers. She bit her bottom lip and felt herself flush with the memory of last night. Gingerly, Mikan felt the skin of her warming cheeks. What had gotten into her? She had acted like an entirely different person. She practically threw herself on him last night; she had even offered up her bed.

She had no idea what any of it meant. She was just so relieved that he had come back safely, and that he trusted her enough to let her go search for Aoi with him. Aoi. She blinked rapidly and turned to look for Natsume. Surely he hadn't left without her.

A chilly draft produced goosebumps on her exposed skin and she noticed the balcony door was open a small crack, the source of the draft. The floorboards creaked under her weight as she tiptoed over to the door. Pushing it open she found him leaning against the railing. His hands were clasped together, his back hunched, and his whole appearance seemed lonely to her. Mikan swore to herself he almost looked sad and forlorn before his expression turned to his normal impassive one.

She mimicked his posture and leaned against the railing next to him. The sky was grey. Wisps of clouds blocked the morning sun, making it dull and lifeless. Mikan suddenly felt awkward, she didn't know what to say. She felt like she needed to address what happened the night before and get clarification. It was unclear to her what happened and where they stood. A breath of air escaped her lips and crystallized in the cold air.

Natsume straightened suddenly. "We should head out soon." He turned and walked back into her room. So much for talking about it.

Mikan packed quickly and quietly. Natsume pondered over his small bag for a moment before removing the maps he brought and pocketing them in his jacket. It looked like he was opting to go light, causing Mikan to second guess her own pack. She knelt down and pried open a loose floorboard. Carefully she removed something wrapped in cloth. It was a knife. The blade glistened and she caught Natsume raising a single brow at her, she ignored it and pocketed the knife in her jacket.

If he was going light then so would she. "We should get some food before we leave," she offered up. He nodded slightly in response and she led him from her room to the kitchen. The halls were empty and still with the night's cool air. Their muffled footsteps were the only sounds. Just before the entrance to the kitchen she paused and held up a hand to stop him. A solitary voice echoed from inside. It was delicate and melodic, Anna was singing.

Mikan instructed that Natsume hide himself in a corner for a moment until she could clear out Anna. For some reason she had felt the need to keep him concealed. Once he impatiently removed himself from sight, she popped her head into the kitchen.

"Hey Anna," she called as cheerfully as she could.

Anna spun and her song abruptly stopped. "Morning Mikan! I wasn't expecting help in the kitchen today."

"I didn't come to help," Mikan apologized. "Actually some cute boy was looking for you over by the," Mikan raked her brain for someplace far away, "the infirmary." It was the farthest away and would take some time to walk to. Knowing Anna's obsession over boys Mikan was sure she would want to seek this imaginary boy out immediately.

"A boy?" she asked, a hint of excitement lit up her face. "Who?"

Mikan smiled sheepishly. "Ah. I actually forgot his name, sorry."

Anna shrugged off her apron and waltzed out the door, winking at Mikan as she passed. "Wish me luck," she laughed and Mikan felt bad for lying to her.

When Anna had turned the corner Mikan beckoned Natsume over. He looked annoyed so she smiled meekly and pushed him into the empty kitchen. He hoisted himself up to sit on one of the counters and Mikan couldn't help but stare at him as he reached for an apple and bit into it. He caught her staring and she quickly busied herself by pouring a cup of water.

She gulped down her water loudly and nibbled on a banana. She felt like she wouldn't be able to keep anything down for some reason. She turned to ask him about what happened the night before but a voice stopped her dead in her thoughts.

"Hey Mikan," it called, "Anna said you were in here." It was Hotaru, and she was pushing open the door. It opened painfully slowly to Mikan as Hotaru continued blindly talking to the door. "Ruka's here and he's worried—" She trailed off as her gaze fell from Mikan to Natsume on the counter. Her eyes narrowed. "About him," Hotaru finished nodding to Natsume.

Mikan stood frozen. She was hoping to have been gone before anyone noticed their disappearance or them being together so early in the day for no apparent reason. Natsume, however, removed himself from the counter.

Hotaru spun quickly on her heel and kicked open the door to the food hall. Through the door Mikan noticed a group on angels huddled around a tabled. It consisted of Ruka, Koko and Sumire. Hotaru walked briskly over to them, Natsume followed, and Mikan ran to catch up to Hotaru.

Upon seeing Natsume, Ruka shot up from his seat and met Natsume halfway. Ruka's eyes were wide and he looked seriously concerned.

"Ruka," Natsume said. "What's wrong?"

"Natsume," he whispered hugging him. He released him quickly after and said, "I was so worried. You never came back after Persona's errand and then there was an attack and Reo said you were hurt." Ruka's eyes were swimming with emotion.

"I'm fine," Natsume said.

Ruka stared at his best friend. "You never came home. I waited for you all night."

Mikan gulped and felt her face warm. She was anxious waiting for Natsume to reply. She glanced around, everyone else was watching curiously.

"Yeah," Sumire said irritated. "Ruka had us looking for your dead body all night."

Koko walked up then and looked pointedly at Natsume. "Reo spun this crazy convincing story of you falling victim to a shadow attack."

Mikan watched as impatience swam through Natsume's body. Every minute of this inquisition took away from him finding Aoi.

"Hold on," Mikan said suddenly remembering something from yesterday. "Yesterday Reo said you wouldn't come back in one piece before the attack even happened."

"Wait," Ruka interrupted. "Yesterday?" he asked Mikan. "You were with him yesterday?"

Natsume's eyes narrowed and he looked even more irritated. "It's not the first time Reo and Persona have tried something. You know that," he said to his friends.

Mikan tried to wrap her head around what Natsume said. "Hold on," she choked out. "Are you saying they try to harm you on a regular basis?" Not even just harm, from what she could remember it sounded like they tried to set him up for his death at times.

The group got eerily silent with Mikan's question. Their averted eyes and Natsume's silence gave her the answer she dreaded. She let out a shaky breath and then moved to shove Natsume in frustration. He caught her hands easily and she tried yanking them back but his grip was firm.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she cried, forcing back tears of frustration.

Natsume closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he opened them and looked down at her. "You didn't need to know," he said through gritted teeth.

Mikan was ready to object but Hotaru stopped her. "What are you even doing here?" she asked Natsume.

Mikan really didn't want him to answer that question in fear of what he would say. He was there because she had practically begged him to take her with him in finding Aoi. She was sure he didn't want the others to go search for Aoi. She recalled Ruka telling her ages ago that he always went alone. It was a stretch enough for him to let her go with him.

Natsume didn't answer Hotaru and Hotaru probed him for more. "Why were you two together—" Mikan choked over her friend's words. She knew. Hotaru totally knew he was with her all last night. How, she didn't know, but Hotaru knew.

"We found Aoi!" Mikan blurted out before Hotaru could finish her question. All eyes pinned on her.

"What?" Ruka breathed.

"I mean we found a new place to look," Mikan clarified.

"Where?" Koko asked.

"The cracks," Mikan blurted before realizing it was probably better if she hadn't mentioned that bit of information. Too late though, so she elaborated. "I think they're connected with tunnels somehow." Their eyes widened in clarity. "We were going to go look for her before this interrogation happened," Mikan explained.

Koko, Sumire, and Ruka all narrowed their eyes, not at her but at Natsume. "No," Ruka said glaring at him.

Sumire glared now. "You were going to go in there alone?" Mikan frowned at Sumire's use of _you_ , technically Mikan had said _we_ , which implied her as well.

"Where those shadow things live?" Koko asked.

Natsume finally spoke. He looked tense. "It's the only place left," he said drained. "I've looked everywhere else."

"I'm going with you," Ruka said.

"No," Natsume replied coldly.

"Us too," Sumire said pointing to Koko.

"It'll be like old times," Koko said. "Running around together, you know just not for Persona this time."

"I can't have you guys risk your lives." Natsume was furious.

"Oh come off it," Sumire sneered. "You were going to take her with you?" she asked pointing to Mikan. "She probably can't even defend herself." Mikan protested against Sumire's remark.

Frustrated, Natsume slammed his hands on the table nearby. "We don't have time for this!"

"Look," Sumire said forcefully. "If she's going, you sure as shit need someone to watch out for her and you know damn well that these two," she motioned to Ruka and Koko, "have nothing on me when it comes to a fight."

This was news to Mikan. She never would have pegged Sumire as the strongest of the three next to Natsume. No one denied her accusation. The three didn't back down and eventually fed up with the delay, Natsume agreed to them coming.

Hotaru had no interest in coming. "If anything happens to Mikan," she said. "I will personally deal with you myself."

So the five of them left the temple with haste. They made detours at Koko, Sumire and Ruka's places so they could prepare and get anything they needed. Mikan noticed that everyone changed into dark colored clothes, leaving her sticking out in her all white getup.

The wind was harsh against them as they flew to the area Natsume had pinpointed on the map. Snow still coated the ground and the icy wind stung their faces. Mikan felt hot tears turn freezing against her cheeks. It was a long flight, the longest Mikan had ever flown, and it was far, far away. The area was way out in the distance away from civilization. Mikan wondered how Natsume had even found the place.

Natsume led the pack and finally started to descend after they cleared a large field and a sliver of trees. Their skin was numb with the cold and the flight had taken a significant toll on some of them. Natsume was the only one that appeared to not be winded or affected in any way.

The crack was some fifty feet from where they landed. Mikan could see how it was different than the others. Its edges weren't as sharp as the others, it had been well weathered.

Koko was the first to walk towards it. "This has to be at least twenty years old," he observed its surroundings.

"How is that possible?" Ruka asked.

"More importantly," Sumire stated turning towards Natsume. "You really think Persona hid Aoi down there?"

After some time he answered her. "It's the only place left."

Natsume walked over to the edge and peered down it. The others glanced down nervously as well. This was definitely uncharted territory for all of them. Koko's eyes had never been so wide before and Sumire had a significant scowl on her face. Natsume turned to everyone. "You can turn back if you want."

Ruka was the first to shake himself from his stupor. "No way."

"We're with you," Sumire said.

Koko sighed. "Let's get this over with."

Mikan watched as Natsume turned to look at her. She quickly glanced back down the crack, causing her to gulp and then she met his gaze. She hid her fear behind a smile. "Let's go find Aoi," she said.

Natsume went down first, there was no fighting him on that. They all watched him disappear down the crack. Ruka followed then Sumire. It was decided that Koko should go last so Mikan was up. She turned to look at Koko who had an eerie smile on. "Don't die," he said.

Mikan sat on the edge and dangled her feet over like the others had done, they had made it look so easy. She pushed off and felt herself fall. The way down was narrower than she expected and she picked up speed as she slid down, her back occasionally hit something jutting out. The light quickly disappeared and she held back a scream. She had no idea how close she was to the ground.

A flicker of a flame caught her eye before it vanished and she hurtled towards the ground. Natsume swiftly caught her in his arms before he placed her down on solid ground. Her legs shook and everything was dark. Not just dark but black. Her jacket somehow radiated a faint white light.

Some falling dirt hit her face and she could hear Koko tumbling down from above. A large gruff came from him and she realized he must have hit something rough. Whatever he hit had dislodged itself and thanks to Natsume's new flame they could see it hurtling towards them.

Suddenly, Mikan was swept off her feet and pushed against the opposite wall. Her mouth collided with Sumire's curls and she tried spitting them out. Shocking Mikan, Sumire had pinned her against the wall. Natsume had simultaneously pushed Ruka aside as the loose rock landed right where they had been standing. Koko stumbled down seconds later.

When he finally stood up he let out a quiet woosh. "That was rough."

"You nearly killed us," Sumire hissed at him.

Natsume hushed them and doused his flame, leaving them in complete darkness.

"How are we supposed to see?" Koko whispered.

"We should use light only when absolutely necessary," Natsume said. "We don't want to draw attention to ourselves."

"Too bad she sticks out like a sore thumb. That white is practically glowing," Sumire shot at Mikan.

"I'm sorry I don't have anything black," Mikan said defensively.

There wasn't time for anyone to go back and get something for her. Natsume lit another small flame flashed her a look laced with irritation before he shrugged of his jacket, removed the maps and threw it to her. She put it on quickly, and removed her knife from her jacket and pocketed it in his.

"Happy?" Mikan asked Sumire.

"Hardly," she replied.

Natsume cast two balls of fire. They tumbled across the ground in two directions lighting up the dirt walls with flickering light. There were two paths. Everyone grew quiet as they glanced at both ways. Drops of water made faint echoes as they landed. "We should split up," Natsume said finally.

They shifted around into two groups leaving Mikan in the middle. Ruka stood with Natsume and Koko with Sumire. Mikan glanced at Natsume and couldn't read his expression. She wanted to go with him, to make sure he was okay, and to just be near him.

Sumire grabbed her shoulder before she could move towards him and dragged her back to her side. "You're with us," she said cattily.

Mikan squeaked in surprise.

"I hereby take it upon myself to protect you and watch your annoying back," Sumire hissed.

Mikan was baffled at Sumire's statement. "What?"

"Look," Sumire snapped. "Koko can't take care of himself and Ruka is a closet scaredy cat. I'm your best bet."

Mikan had to agree with Sumire's declaration as she noticed Ruka was glancing around nervously and Koko had nearly killed himself on the way down. They decided to meet back above ground in two hours and they parted ways.

Mikan's eyes adjusted poorly and she could only see blurs. Koko's side comments about being blind made her assume he had done no better. Sumire, however, found herself adjusting quite well giving credit to her cat-like instincts so she took the lead, then Mikan and finally Koko. Mikan trailed her left hand along the edges of the dirt wall to steady herself and retain some sort of balance.

The ground was rocky and uneven and she found herself stumbling often. Koko had run into her many times and he eventually stopped apologizing and just grunted instead whenever it happened. Time was nonexistent. Mikan had no idea if ten minutes or sixty had passed. Every step was taken cautiously and there seemed to be nothing to tell them if they were even going in the right direction.

Their footsteps and labored breathing were the most distinct sounds, occasionally a rat or critter would scurry across their path. Some areas were littered with puddles as well, snow from above ground was probably falling down and melting.

Mikan began to wonder if this was even right. The tunnels might just be tunnels and Aoi could be above ground. Did she lead everyone on this crazy adventure for nothing? Maybe there really was nothing down here. These cracks and the tunnels are where the shadows emerge from, there's no way a child could be hidden down here. It was cold, dark, and the air was stale. It was no place for someone to live.

Koko finally asked the most important question. "So if these tunnels are where the shadows come from… where are all the shadows?"

Mikan heard Sumire stop in her tracks. "That's a good question."

"Thank you," Koko replied smartly.

"I think the tunnel has been curving eastward for a while now," Sumire said.

That was news to Mikan. She currently had no geographical bearing.

"Really?" Koko asked, making Mikan feel better about her lack of knowledge on their location.

"You really are hopeless," Sumire said to him.

"I know," he replied. "Thank goodness I have you."

Sumire urged them forward once more. She picked up the pace a little and they traveled on in silence. It was moments later when Sumire stopped walking, and Mikan nearly bumped into her. She could see two darker chasms and could only guess at what it meant. The path split.

"Which way?" Mikan dared to ask.

Sumire peered down both paths with a frown.

"I'll take left. You two take right," Koko decided for them.

Sumire seemed hesitant at first before she finally said, "All right, be careful."

Koko gave her a chuckle in response before he turned down the left path, leaving them to go down the right. Mikan really wished they could have stayed together. She didn't like the idea of Koko being on his own, especially since Sumire said he couldn't take care of himself.

Her thoughts drifted to him as they walked further down the right path and she grew worried. She wanted to turn back and find him and just go together.

"He'll be fine," Sumire said. Mikan wasn't sure who she was reassuring, her or herself. Her tone did sound nervous.

They walked on and Mikan felt the ground decline slightly. This path was wider than the other she noticed and less rocky. They came upon another split and Sumire huffed impatiently. She removed a small knife from her jacket and carved something on the wall of the leftmost path. Upon closer inspection Mikan saw it was a cross. Sumire pocketed the knife and turned down the path she marked.

They came across many more splits and each time Sumire marked the path they took. Mikan had tried to draw a mental map of where they had turned but it quickly became jumbled.

They continued on in silence until they reached the end of their current path. It jutted off into three new ones and Sumire cried out in frustration. "This is ridiculous!"

Mikan could see Sumire breaking down. She was unraveling and it made her uneasy. Sumire was supposed to be the composed one. Each path looked like it led to the same place, somewhere dark and insignificant. The first one was narrow, the middle looked rougher and the last was wider. There was no telling which way was the correct path. Mikan peered down each one and waited for a sign, anything that would give them some sort of hope. The easiest path looked like the one on the left, but for some reason she felt like that wasn't right. Something caught her eye down the middle path and she headed into it.

"What are you doing?" Sumire called. "You can't just pick randomly!"

"I'm not," Mikan called back.

She knelt down on the ground and reached for what caught her eye. Something was jutting out of the ground. Her finger felt for the point and tugged. The point broke free from the dirt and she held the object in her palm. With her free hand she traced over the rest of the object. It was covered in dirt and bent out of shape but it was unmistakable. It was a feather.

"Look," she said holding the feather up to her.

She snatched the feather from her fingers and inspected it herself. "This is an angel feather."

"I don't think it just floated down here," Mikan said.

"No, it didn't," Sumire agreed. "Let's go down this one then."

Satisfied with her find, Mikan and Sumire chose the middle path to take. The ground was rough and slippery. They walked on and Mikan began to notice more and more feathers buried in the ground the further in they went.

They inspected some of the feathers and determined that they were different and came from different wings. It was unnerving.

"What exactly happened here?" Mikan asked.

"I don't really want to know," Sumire said.

The feathers grew in quantity to the point that they were eventually walking on more feathers than ground.

"I don't like this," Sumire said and Mikan had to agree.

"Should we turn back?" Mikan asked.

"I'm not sure."

They crept forward at a slower pace. The path veered right suddenly and from around the corner they could see a sliver of pale light against the wall. The sudden light caused them to freeze. It flickered faintly so it must have been lit by fire.

They eyed each other and silently debated if they should turn around. Sumire rose a finger to her lips signaling for her to be quiet and she quietly stepped around the corner. Mikan felt her heart race with adrenaline and she followed her footsteps.

The light was greater around the corner and it lit up the ground and walls. The ground was covered in feathers at this point. They were damaged and looked like something had been drug through them over and over again.

The tunnel billowed out into a chamber that had been carved out. It was so unexpected that they stood transfixed at the edge of the tunnel. Their eyes took sometime to adjust to the sudden light. When they finally adjusted, Mikan scanned the room and she felt sick to her stomach. Sumire too had on a face of disgust and terror. A long wooden table sat in the middle of the room, it was stained a dark brownish reddish color. A rusting hook-like blade was propped up against the table. Empty cages lined the side wall. That wasn't even the worst part. There were wings everywhere, just wings, they had been severed from their owners. Loose feathers coated the floor tying together the whole charade.

Mikan felt weak to her knees at the sight. Sumire's eyes were bulging and then she suddenly lost the contents of her stomach and Mikan had to move away from her if she wanted to maintain hers. She stepped closer to the center table. When she got close enough she noticed a pool of liquid resting on the table. She feared the worst as she inhaled and could smell the festering metallic finish. It was blood.

Sumire slowly walked over to her. "What kind of sick twisted shit is going on down here?"

Mikan picked up the nearest set of wings. They felt lifeless and dull in her hands. Their sheen was gone, replaced with grime and dirt. The area where they had been attached to someone's body was crusted over and looked like it was deteriorating.

"Something cut these wings off," Mikan stated.

"Bet it was that blade," Sumire said angrily. "This is sick. Beyond insane."

Mikan dropped the wings and walked over to the empty cages. They too were littered with loose feathers, and something rotten judging by the smell. She was just thankful they were empty.

Footsteps alerted her to the presence of someone new and she jumped back over to Sumire's side. They turned together and glimpsed at a disheveled looking guy walking towards them with his head buried in a book. He glanced up and was startled by their presence. "Who are you?" he asked.

The guy was unfamiliar to Mikan so she could only hope that Sumire recognized him.

"Who are you?" Sumire asked back, causing Mikan to groan.

"No one," he said, casually. He walked over to the center table and placed his book down gently. "It seems you've stumbled into quiet an unfortunate place."

Mikan didn't like his tone. He seemed to be excited to be standing around in such a revolting place. His fingers drew a pattern in the puddle of blood on the table, making Mikan feel nauseous.

"Where's Persona?" Sumire spat at him.

"Persona?" he repeated. He blinked his eyes at them. "Who's that?" he asked carelessly drawing bloody circles on the table.

"Don't lie to me," she yelled. "You're working for him aren't you?"

He shrugged and dragged his long finger across the table as he walked towards them. "I work for myself," he said calmly.

"And what exactly do you do?" Mikan asked him.

He stopped at the edge of the table and his lips curled into a half smile revealing pointy teeth. "Do you want to see?"

"No," they replied in unison.

"Well you see," he said walking towards them. "I don't think you really have a choice."

Sumire armed herself with her dagger and defensively held Mikan back with her arm.

The guy laughed at her sudden bravery. "Who's first then?" he asked.

"It's two against one," Sumire spat. "Just try and take us." Her fingers tightened around the dagger and she looked ready to strike.

"Oh!" he said loudly. "I'm being rude. I'm sorry." His eyes flashed with mischief and he motioned behind him. "Let me introduce you to my friends."

The smell hit them first like bricks. Rotting flesh. They appeared from hidden crevices and cracks. Shadows crept and slithered up around him. Mikan reached into Natsume's jacket to retrieve her own knife to defend herself. It probably would have no affect but she would feel better holding it.

She grabbed for the hilt and yanked it out. Something white floated down to the ground from the pocket. She eyed it curiously and recognized it immediately. It was the feather she had given him. The one he was supposed to have lost. Its shine was bright compared to the other feathers that littered the room, and quickly, she snatched it up and held it between her fingers.

The feather gave her a surge of strength and courage. "Your friends stink!" Mikan yelled at him.

"How hurtful," he replied.

"Are you an idiot?" Sumire hissed at her.

A shadow lunged toward her and Mikan watched as she quickly sidestepped it. She spun and her dagger nicked its side. The two girls watched as its black rotting flesh morphed back together. Sumire lost her composure at seeing it reform itself into a shadow and another shadow attacked her free arm. It brought her down to the ground and Mikan was reminded of the sheer weight they mysteriously had, like gravity was on their side keeping them close to the ground. Sumire screamed in shock as Mikan dodged a shadow coming for her. Two more shadows latched on to Sumire and dragged her towards the wooden table. Her screams became muffled as she truly became terrified.

Mikan called out to her as a shadow laced its icy like grip on her arm with her knife. It pulled her down to the ground and she stumbled. The knife fell from her grip and she did all she could to hold on to the feather. She would not let go of it. She gripped it tight and curled her hand into a fist. She swung it at the shadow and she felt its grip loosen on her arm. Shocked she swung it again and it slinked away completely.

Free of the shadow's grasp she jumped to her feet and dove for her knife and then Sumire. For some reason they fell back at her punches. She dug her knife into the backs of the shadows and they exploded into a rotting liquid. Sumire squirmed under the repulsive liquid.

"What are you doing?" the guy screamed harshly.

Sumire jumped shakily to her feet and gripped Mikan's arm. She spun and threw her dagger toward the guy. Mikan watched as it flew towards its target. It traveled fast and he could only move so far out of the way. It missed the point between his eyes and sliced his cheek instead.

Not waiting for his reaction, Sumire yanked Mikan's arm and ran towards the tunnel they had come from. Mikan quickly pocketed the feather for safe keeping. The smell of rotting flesh and the angry screams from the guy followed them into the tunnel. The light faded away and the shadows grew faster and stealthier in the dark. They could hide easily and jump from anywhere. They weren't grabbing though instead they were slashing with hidden claws. They were out for blood. Something was cutting into their skin trying to slow them down. A shadow cut across her face and she felt her cheek warm with blood.

Their eyes had no time to adjust to the dark and they found themselves constantly running into the walls. Sumire still held tight onto her arm as they ran blindly. The adrenaline made them run fast but it still wasn't fast enough. The shadows tripped and cut them everywhere. Mikan felt sharp slices cut through her jacket and pants. Their cuts felt like icy blades and the warm blood that emerged stung where they had cut.

They turned abruptly down a different path hoping to lose them. They were able to shake some of them but a good chunk still followed. Sumire's grip on Mikan's arm began to slip as blood soaked through and weakened her grasp. Their breathing was rough and hard, and Mikan could taste blood dripping from her cheek over her lips. Sumire lost her footing suddenly and pulled them both down. She screamed bloody murder as Mikan tried to help her up and fight off the attacking shadows.

Mikan managed to pull her up and took the lead. She felt completely drained, it was pure adrenaline that was keeping her moving. She just needed to find some sort of opening that they could crawl out of. Anything. She rounded a corner too fast and collided with the other side. Her arm ached under the pressure and she hastily pushed off the wall and pushed forward. Sumire openly wailed now. Her cries were frantic and strained.

"Come on!" Mikan cried. "We are not going to die down here."

Mikan felt Sumire starting to fade away. Her pace slowed and she was losing her grip on consciousness.

Mikan pulled so hard on her wrist she thought she was going to break it. "Please Sumire, please," she begged. She collided with another wall and turned sharply. Her eyes widened as she saw a flicker of light. She fixated on it and begged for one more adrenaline rush to propel her forward. The flicker grew larger and through clouded eyes she saw it was a flame. Three bodies were illuminated by a flame. They felt forever away as Mikan ran towards them.

The shadows seemed restless and their cuts felt deeper and faster. The flame across the tunnel grew larger as they neared.

A shadow cut the hand that gripped Sumire's arm and she cried out. She tripped and quickly recovered. Desperate and running out of steam she called out to him. "Natsume!" she cried, choking on her own blood. "Throw a flame." Her words echoed down the tunnel and she waited for them to reach him. Seconds later the flame left his hand and hurtled towards them.

She pushed herself and Sumire roughly against the wall as the flame shot past them and collided with the shadows. They cried out in raspy wails as the flames caused their bodies to disintegrate and burn away. The flame seemed to hold some of them off. It grew and acted as a barrier as she ran to the guys. The adrenaline was leaving her body quickly as she ran closer. Close enough to make out their shocked faces. They ran too and the gap grew smaller until she collapsed right before them.

"Help her!" Mikan cried pushing away their hands. "Please, Sumire. Help her." Tears stung her eyes. Sumire had passed out and Natsume and Ruka rushed to lift her up. Koko reached for Mikan and slung her arm around his shoulder to help her walk.

"Oh God," he murmured taking in her appearance.

They were fairly close to where they had entered. Mikan couldn't believe they had actually ran that far. She slumped against the wall as Natsume took Sumire completely from Ruka, popped out his wings and flew straight up. Ruka followed him quickly.

Koko urged her to move too, but she felt so weak. She wanted to sit and lay down. "Just one minute," she begged. She felt herself fall to the ground and Koko rushed to her side.

"Mikan, oh God," he whispered. "Come on Mikan. Come on." He materialized his wings and held her tight as he too shot off the tunnel floor and flew up. She was a complete deadweight in his arms. He struggled to fly straight and he hit the wall once before they finally broke the surface. Mikan felt herself fall from Koko's grasp as they fell and collapsed on the ground in a tangled heap, Koko breathed deeply and Mikan rolled painfully onto her back. She stared up at the pale winter sky. The winter air blanketed her burning skin.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Koko stare at her with horror. "Oh God," he whispered. "Mikan." His eyes traveled somewhere else. "Natsume!"

Mikan weakly grasped Koko's wrist. She parted her lips to speak. It came out strangled and hoarse. "Did you find her? Aoi."

She saw him shake his head. "Natsume, now!" he called.

She heard shuffling and then he was there, kneeling above her. "Go," he said sternly to Koko. "Sumire needs you."

Mikan tried to smile up at him, to reassure him that she was okay, but she hurt. She hurt so much. She painfully forced herself into a sitting position. She looked into his eyes and she thought they looked seriously pained. She reached into her jacket, noticing how her hand was coated with blood and shook violently, and she reached for the feather she had tucked away for safe keeping. She pulled it out and pressed it to his chest.

"This is yours," she breathed quietly.

His eyes swam with emotion as he looked at the feather. Slowly, his hand embraced hers and he lowered his head down over their hands. He let out a shaky breath and Mikan felt it tickle her fingers.

"Natsume!" Ruka called from close by. "Natsume, we need to bandage her cuts." Mikan saw him shake him gently. Ruka had torn some strips of fabric from his shirt to use for bandaging.

Mikan's arms gave way and she collapsed onto the ground once more. She rolled her head to the side to get a glimpse of Sumire. She was wrapped all over in various shades of cloth and now Koko was weeping over her body whispering something to her.

She felt hands lift her arms and peel away the blood soaked fabric. It clung to her like glue. They both worked quickly as they bandaged her up. "Mikan," Ruka said. "You have to stay awake." She tried to blink herself into consciousness but everything felt so heavy. She felt someone rip her shirt down the middle.

She closed her eyes and felt a tear roll down her cheek. "It hurts," she whispered.

Warm hands cupped her face and she opened her eyes. "Stay with me, please," Natsume whispered to her.

"We need to get them to a healer," Ruka said. "Now."

"Koko!" Natsume called out. "Take her."

Koko nodded and gently picked Mikan up off the ground. She watched as Natsume then carefully picked up Sumire and took off into the sky. Koko followed after him shortly carrying her cut up body. While Mikan was still conscious, Sumire was completely unconscious. Mikan could only hope that they would make it in time and find a healer.


	20. The Sting of Regret

**Chapter Twenty: The Sting of Regret**

During their flight back into town, Ruka had flown on ahead to look for Hotaru's brother and have him be prepared for when they arrived. Natsume had landed much sooner than Koko had as he was a faster flyer. Subaru and some additional staff were waiting and ready for them when they landed. He took one look at their blood-stained bodies and ushered them inside.

Subaru fussed over Sumire and let the other staff tend to Mikan for the time being since she was still slightly conscious. "What did this?" he asked.

"Shadows," Ruka answered.

Subaru's eyes flicked up from Sumire's body. "I've never seen shadow attacks like these before."

Mikan felt many hands comb over her body as she was placed on a bed. They ripped off her bandages, and washed and treated her wounds with ointment. She felt like she was being stitched up. The pricks were hard to distinguish from the every other ache on her body. Still she tried to suppress a groan, but failed.

"Get her some numbing tea!" Subaru called to a nurse.

One of the nurses tending to her quickly stopped and left to get the tea. Mikan tried moving her head to see what all was happening. Natsume was supporting a disheveled Koko who was crying furiously, she couldn't help but notice Natsume's stony expression.

A loud banging noise came from the doors and Mikan heard the frustrated cries of her best friend. Hotaru's gaze flew over to Mikan's form and froze before she rounded on the three guys.

"How did this happen?" she yelled, storming over to them. The fury of Hotaru was strong. Her voice was laced with malice. If looks could kill they'd all be dead.

Mikan strained to hear Hotaru's voice over her ringing ears and she tried calling out to her. Coughs violently rattled her body and she found herself struggling to breathe. Her body was going into shock. The nurses around her began to panic and Subaru rushed to her side. Hotaru's yelling got louder.

"Get her out of here!" Subaru demanded. "All of them. Get out." He threw something blindly over his shoulder at them as he started healing Mikan. She felt his ability coarse through her and warm her. Before the previous attack Subaru had usually only mended paper cuts for her. The healing typically felt like tingling. But now it felt stronger, like electricity. Her whole body tingled and burned with his ability.

The sensation stopped suddenly and she felt something pour down her throat and she drifted off into sleep.

She slept well into the night until hushed tones roused her from her sleep.

"I let you get slaughtered."

"I knew there would be risks."

"That's no excuse. I should have gone alone."

"Yeah? Then you'd be here instead, or dead."

Mikan recognized the whispers as Sumire's and Natsume's and she turned to see them talking quietly over Sumire's bed. Sumire was propped up against the headboard and Natsume stood to the side of her. A sleeping Koko lay on the bed next to them.

"Sumire," Mikan said, her voice cracking. "You're okay." Both sets of eyes flashed to hers. Natsume's looked shocked.

Sumire wrinkled her nose at Mikan. "You look like shit," she said.

She noticed the bandages that covered her body too. "You don't look any better," she whispered back. She moved to sit herself up but Natsume had quickly moved to her bedside, he placed a hand on her chest, and promptly pushed her back down into a laying position. It looked like he wanted to say something but he didn't. He looked pained.

"Natsume," she whispered. "There was this room and it was full—"

He sat down on the edge of her bed, silencing her. "Sumire already told me."

Mikan could only stare up at him. He looked so defeated. "I'm sorry we couldn't find her."

His finger traced the cut on her cheek. "The tunnel Ruka and I took led to an empty room," he said. "It belonged to a child."

That caused Mikan's eyes to widen.

"It was hers, I know it was," he said finally.

"She wasn't there?"

"No." His hand fell from her face.

It was hard seeing him so lost and hurt. She pushed herself up into a sitting position once more and wound her arms around him. After a moment, his arms wrapped tightly around her. The faintest of apologies was whispered into her hair. It was so quiet she wasn't sure if he had even said it until his grip on her tightened and pulled her closer.

He held her until she fell asleep again. The next morning when she woke she was alone. Glancing down at her skin she noticed it was in the final stages of healing thanks to Subaru. It glowed slightly and felt delicate to her touch. Mikan tested parts of her body for soreness and found little. Subaru had some ability, she would have to thank him later. She curled her fingers into a fist and stretched her legs. She deemed them okay and slowly eased them out of the bed.

She glanced to Sumire's still sleeping figure and noticed that Koko had joined her sometime in the night and she felt a lonely ache. She wondered when Natsume had left.

With a little effort she pushed herself off her bed and felt herself get lightheaded. She reached out for the small nightstand by the bed to regain her balance and her hand fell on top of some silky smooth fabric or something. The sensation of being off balance still clogged her eyes and she waited for them to clear. Her fingers played with the smooth object, they traced the ends and felt its fine edges. Then it slapped her in her face, the familiar smoothness, the silk. Her eyes dropped to her hand and she felt the world freeze. Underneath her healing pinkish fingers was a feather. The feather was in its own way perfect. Mikan's heart accelerated as she picked it up and held it, she stared at it like a child would stare at a magic show, fully mesmerized.

It was his. Her eyes scanned the floor for others. There was no way he would have just left it there so casually. Was there? She twirled it between her fingers and felt truly and unexplainably in awe. Her heart was pounding so loudly that she thought it would wake the sleeping bodies of Koko and Sumire. With a glance back at Koko and Sumire's sleeping figures, she tiptoed over to the infirmary door so she wouldn't wake them.

Stepping out from the infirmary door she was braced with a cool chill. She was only dressed in a gown the nurses provided her and it didn't provide any warmth. Still she had to know if he was still around. She looked down at the feather nestled between her fingers and peered at it, hoping it would guide her. Of course, it did no such thing.

She felt something whoosh by her and then suddenly Koko stood peering down at her. The action was shocking and she had to take two steps back. "Koko," she said in disbelief. Where had he come from? She was sure he had been sound asleep, snoring even.

Conscious of the feather she moved to hide it only to find that it was no longer in her hand. She looked around frantically for it before her eyes fell on Koko. He held it dangerously close to his face, making his eyes cross as he stared at it.

Mikan was struck by the unfortunate situation. Heat rose to her cheeks.

Koko's eyes mechanically moved to hers. "This is a feather," he said.

Mikan blinked. "Yes," she said.

"It's black."

"Yes."

"This feather is black."

Mikan only stared back at him. The cogs in his brain were working overtime as he stared at the feather in disbelief.

He pointed the feather out slightly. "This," he said holding it higher now, "is a black feather."

"Yes. We've already established that it's black, and a feather." Frustrated, Mikan tried to grab it out of his hands only to have him remove it from her reach.

Koko's demeanor changed instantly. A goofy open-mouthed grin broke out across his face and his head spun around the room as if he was looking for someone. Finding no one he turned to her and narrowed his eyes. "Where'd you get it?"

Mikan balked. He was totally teasing her. He knew where it came from. A low growl erupted from her as she tried reaching for it again. "Koko! Come on, give it back."

"Why?" he teased. "Is it yours?"

That caused Mikan to freeze. She thought it was hers but really she had just assumed it was, it was by her bed after all. She fumbled for words.

Koko chuckled at her and waved it teasingly in her face. "Of course it's yours. I mean not yours yours, but it belongs to you."

He knew. He so knew.

"Oh my gosh!" Koko gushed suddenly. "We need to go find him so I can tease him!"

"What?" Mikan choked out. She had wanted to look for him earlier but now she was feeling nervous thanks to Koko's teasing. She lunged for the feather once more but he was too quick. They ended up doing a funny dance while Mikan tried to pry it from his fingers. Koko merely laughed throughout the whole charade.

"What are you doing?"

Mikan froze and Koko spun around to the new voice. Quickly he tucked his hand with Natsume's feather behind his back.

"Ruka!" Koko called.

Mikan noticed Ruka's eyes were trained on the arm hiding behind Koko's back. Had Koko been fast enough and avoided Ruka's prying eyes? She could only hope. Actually why was Koko hiding it from him anyway? They're supposed to be friends.

"What are you doing out of bed?" a new voice asked, coming around the corner. Hotaru looked only at Mikan, which caused her to pale.

"Uhhh." Mikan fumbled with the hem of her gown.

An arm flung itself around her shoulder and Koko brandished a large smile. "Good morning! We were just looking for Nat—ugh" Mikan interrupted him by suddenly elbowing him in the side. "—kins. Napkins," he groaned, rubbing his side.

"Napkins?" Hotaru asked skeptically.

"Yup."

"Mikan knows very well that there are napkins in the infirmary on the shelf with all the bandages."

Mikan felt Hotaru's icy stares. She wasn't buying Koko's lie. "Right! I did know that."

Ruka still was eyeing Koko curiously and he moved a step closer to him to try and glimpse at his arm tucked behind his back. "What're you hiding behind your back?" he asked stepping even closer causing Koko to pivot his body.

"What?" Koko played dumb.

"Your back," Ruka repeated.

Mikan's whole body tensed. She really wasn't prepared for this whole confrontation and Hotaru's impending judgement.

To Mikan's horror Koko removed his arm from behind his back and brandished it in a gaudy manner in front of his body. Instead of a feather though his fingers were clenched together, all but the thumb. A thumb's up. Koko was giving Ruka a thumb's up. Mikan's mouth fell open. Where did he put the feather?

"It's a thumbs up," he said cheerfully to Ruka. "Just for you."

Hotaru's eyes narrowed in annoyance and Ruka stood perplexed. "What?"

"You know. It's for doing such a great job at subduing Hotaru and keeping her from murdering us for yesterday."

Hotaru recovered first. "My qualms lie with only one of you," she said coldly. "And it seems he's too cowardly to accept his fate and ran off somewhere."

"Hold on," Ruka said defensively. "He didn't even want any of us to go."

She turned to him. "If he really didn't want any of you to go then he would have tried harder. If he really cared for any of you or her, then she wouldn't have gotten hurt."

Hotaru was really going for the punches, Mikan noticed and when Hotaru punches she goes all out. This was not going to end well for anyone. She might even tarnish what little friendship she had established with Ruka in the process. She was out for blood, and not just anyone's but Natsume's.

"It's not his fault!" Mikan protested.

"Are you sure?" Hotaru asked her. "Since you've met him you've been badly injured twice, and you've been targeted by Persona."

Mikan couldn't argue with that. "I was only trying to help." It was a terrible excuse and before it was out of her mouth Mikan knew how Hotaru would respond to it.

"It seems like you've only made things worse," she said pointedly.

Mikan looked to Ruka and Koko to see if they would defend her but instead their gazes were to the floor. The silence struck her and she knew she really had just been a hindrance. Mikan hung her head to the floor. She was growing angry and frustrated.

"You should get back to the infirmary, and when you're cleared to go you should focus on your temple duties, and forget about all of this, and him." Hotaru had the best intentions for Mikan but still her words were harsh and hurtful. Her next words really hurt though. "He doesn't care for you."

Ruka said, "Wait, that's not—" but Mikan didn't let him finish.

Mikan flashed her eyes to Hotaru's. She tried to convey as much hatred and sadness and hurt in them as possible. Mikan would regret what she did next later but still she felt like she had to at the time. She shoved her best friend, hard. The sound of her footsteps echoed through the hall as she turned away from them and from the infirmary. She was done resting.

Koko caught up with her moments later. She crossed her arms around her chest, she wanted to be alone and she was kind of angry with him for not defending her.

"She's wrong, you know," he said holding out the black feather to her. "This didn't just fall out."

Her eyes softened as she took it from his fingers, and her anger with him trickled away. He looked like he wanted to say more but instead he frowned and turned back down the hall.

Mentally exhausted she found her way to her room to change out of the thin gown the nurses had given her. She found her largest and comfiest sweater and pulled it over her head. It had a large collar that she tucked her chin into. Hiding felt like the best thing to do at the moment. She tucked the black feather away in her clothes. If she left it anywhere, she feared it would disappear.

The temple was quiet that day. Not many workers moved about. She vaguely remembered her grandpa telling her that he and some of the elders would be gone for some time a couple days ago. She wondered around the temple until she came across an abandoned storage room that she was sure no one used anymore. Opening the door she saw various items of junk piled around the room and on rows of shelves. She had never been in there before. She came across a dusty pile of books that were stacked carelessly on a shelf next to some moth eaten blankets.

One with a red spine caught her eye and she pulled it off the shelf. There was a layer of dust on the cover that she brushed away and the cover was so faded she could only make out one word. _Fairytales._ She opened the book and could immediately smells the mustiness and age of the book. It was old, very old.

A cluttering noise made her snap the book closed and she turned to the noise.

"Yo Misaki!" Tsubasa said fumbling over some old toys on the floor. He looked up and paused. "You're not Misaki."

"No," Mikan said.

He laughed nervously. "Hey whatcha doing?"

"What are you doing?" she asked back. He was supposed to be somewhere else she was sure.

"Crap," he muttered. "Well, I guess you caught me. This is my secret napping place."

Mikan looked around the room and the rows of shelves. "You nap here?"

"Well over there," he said pointing behind him.

She tucked the book under her arm and started towards him. When she rounded the corner she was amazed at what she saw. Blankets, pillows and cushions had been spread out in an orderly mess that had been carved out of the junk. There were candles for light, a small table, a shelf with hand crafted trinkets and a pile of books tucked in a corner.

"Welcome to my zone," Tsubasa said plopping down on one of the cushions.

"Whoa," said Mikan.

She heard the door to the room open and could only assume that it was Misaki. Sure enough Misaki rounded the corner and almost ran into her.

"Oh Mikan! You got cleared from the infirmary then?" she said shocked.

"She found my secret," Tsubasa said.

"Well then," Misaki said holding up a basket of food. "Want to join us?"

"Sure," Mikan said sitting down on a worn blue cushion.

Misaki laid the food she had out on the small table. It was an assortment of breads and jellies and Mikan found herself famished. She reached for a piece and spread some red jelly on it.

"So Hotaru's in a foul mood," Misaki said. "We should avoid her at all costs."

Tsubasa nodded. "Noted."

"This place is great," Mikan said looking around.

"Yeah," Tsubasa said. "And no one bothers us here. I've been coming here for years and not a single person has ever stumbled upon it, until you just now."

"It's so peaceful," Mikan found herself saying.

Mikan ate in silence as Tsubasa and Misaki joked back in forth. She grew envious of their relationship. It was so carefree and playful. She reflected on her own with Natsume and wasn't even sure if she could call it a relationship. How did he even feel about her? Their relationship was built on fabricated conversations and nothing really. Was Hotaru right, did he really not care for her?

"How do you know?" Mikan asked quietly to her lap.

"Huh?" Tsubasa asked.

"How do you know if someone cares about you?" She watched as their expressions turned soft and she felt her eyes betray her with tears. She fumbled around in her clothes and carefully removed the black feather. She held it tightly in her lap. Tsubasa and Misaki's eyes grew large.

"Is that...?" Misaki trailed off.

"It's Natsume's," Mikan admitted. She could feel her jumbled thoughts and feelings overflowing in the dam that was her mind. The walls were cracking and they were all about to spill out. She waited for a second until they broke. "Hotaru said he doesn't care for me, but this is his." She motioned to the feather. "He kept mine, and he says these weird things. I don't know. We argue a lot and he teased me a lot at first and was rude, but ever since I got my wings things have been different." Tears flowed down her face rapidly now like raindrops. "He was always so guarded or he is and that night he touched my wings and I felt so much pain, and sadness from him. Oh God. It was so overwhelming. No single person should ever experience that much emotion. It's cruel and unfair." She glanced at their faces. They resembled stunned statues.

Mikan hiccupped and continued pouring out her thoughts. "It's so confusing. One minute he's stone cold and the next he's gentle and teaching me how to fly, or he's pushing me away. He was never scared of my wings either! And then we kissed and it was…and I… and he's not a bad person. I swear. He never intended for me to get hurt helping Yoichi or yesterday. I did those things on my own but no one understands that!" She took a much needed deep breath. "Everyone is so sure he's bad for me, but he's not. He just has so much on his plate. He takes on everyone else's problems on top of his own. He tries to protect everyone else but himself and when I come along and try to protect him I just screw everything up!" She stared at Tsubasa and Misaki now. They blinked back at her. It was a lot to take in.

"I don't understand how I am supposed to feel," Mikan said. "How do you two do it? You obviously like each other and no one objects to that. How is it so easy for you? Why is everything pitted against us? Against him?"

She was done talking, there was nothing else she could say. She felt like she had said it all, but why? Why were they just sitting there? "Say something, please," she begged.

Instead Tsubasa reached two long arms out to her and pulled her into a hug. She cried harder on his lap, and Misaki stroked her hair. "I had no idea you were going through so much," Tsubasa whispered.

"Me either," Misaki said.

"Life works differently for everyone," Tsubasa started. "Here you and Natsume are two people that need each other, but others don't want together and then you have Misaki and me, who just pretend that we don't like each other."

"You know," Misaki said blushing at Tsubasa's comment. "Initially when I heard about him he did seem dangerous, but Mikan you've grown to know him and from what you've just told us… He doesn't seem like a bad person."

"I bet he's just as confused as you are," Tsubasa said. "You're this amazing girl that should be terrified of him but ultimately aren't. You keep running to him even though he pushes you away. If a girl did that to me, I'd be confused too."

"I feel like he wouldn't just give that to anyone," Misaki said pointing to his feather. "That seems like a big deal."

Mikan sniffed back her sobs and nodded.

"Also," Misaki said with a hint of playfulness in her tone. "When did this kiss happen? How was it?"

Mikan felt herself blush and she looked at Misaki incredulously.

"Ew, stop," Tsubasa said. "I don't want to hear about this."

That caused Mikan to laugh. "You guys are okay with him then?"

"I mean he's scary as hell," Tsubasa said. "But, if he really does like you, and you have feelings for him, I will not get in the way of that."

"Yeah," Misaki agreed. "Hotaru will come around eventually anyway. She's just mad because he's stealing you from her," she teased.

"We'll defend your feelings for him." Tsubasa said finally.

"Now come on," Misaki said standing up. "We have somewhere to go."

"We do?" Tsubasa asked.

She grabbed both their hands and led them to the door. "Yup."

Misaki dragged them all the way to the food hall. She pushed open the doors and frowned when she only saw Anna and Nonoko sitting at the tables. They waved.

"Go gather the troops," Misaki said to Tsubasa.

"Troops?" he asked back.

"People we know," she said rolling her eyes. "Just do it."

Tsubasa excused himself and went to look for people they knew. Mikan was just as confused at what Misaaki was trying to accomplish but went along with it anyway. They talked with Anna and Nonoko as they waited.

After some time people began to fill the food hall and glanced around questionably, wondering why they were summoned. Mikan didn't even really know all of them and just figured Tsubasa had gathered random people.

Eventually though the familiars congregated around where they were sitting. Mikan noticed that Ruka and Koko were still there. Even Hotaru had come down and sat next to Anna. Tsubasa returned finally with two final people. One was Sumire and the other was a guy who unmistakably had to be her brother. He had the same seaweed curly hair like her.

Misaki stood then and met him. "I gathered some people we knew," he said panting.

"Great," she said flashing him a smile.

They stood in front of some twenty people and Mikan watched as Misaki casually reached for his hand, causing him to stare down at their entwined hands.

"Okay everyone," Misaki called out. "Tsubasa and I are dating now, that's all." Mikan could hear Anna's squeal of delight.

"Wait! What?" Tsubasa cried back, trying to flee from her grasp.

But Misaki's declaration was final, and Mikan watched as their hands laced together tighter. Mikan looked to Misaki and watched as she gave her a quick wink.


	21. Collisions in the Night

**Chapter Twenty-One: Collisions in the Night**

Turns out there were complications with Sumire's healing, some wounds kept reopening and refused to heal, so Subaru had to mend one of her arms by hand and by stitch. He even gave her a sling. She was not happy about it and it prolonged her stay in the infirmary to three days. Koko stayed with her every moment of the day and Ruka was at the temple frequently as well. He seemed to be constantly distracted though and worried about Natsume insufferably.

No one had heard from Natsume since that night in the infirmary. Ruka had even gone as far as asking around Persona's pub and if anyone had seen him. Word was no and that Persona was actually furious with him because Natsume wasn't doing as he wanted. Koko made the awful comment that he might have gone back into the tunnels and Ruka almost fainted.

Mikan slowly isolated herself from Koko and Ruka, even though they sought her out constantly, but she was trying to get back on better terms with Hotaru. It was proving to be strenuous and demanding. Natsume hadn't been around again so that was taken care of. Secretly she wished he would come by. She had been thinking about what Tsuabsa and Misaki had told her a lot lately and she could only hope that he was okay.

The day Subaru cleared Sumire from the infirmary was an exciting one. Everyone was gathered around her bed and Subaru gave her some herbs to take for any leftover pain and scarring. He advised her that she was free from the infirmary but that she should actually stay in the temple for a week or so given the circumstance and unpredictable side effects of injuries that stem from shadow attacks. He even kept prodding at Mikan even though she assured him she was fine.

"Hold on," Subaru said, excusing himself. "I have something for both of you in my office."

Sumire loved every minute of the attention everyone gave her. Overall, she was just excited to get out of the infirmary. She was telling Koko he would have to spoon feed her when she suddenly stopped. "Oh!" she said towards the doors.

Everyone turned to look and there leaning against the door frame was Natsume. He started walking towards everyone and stopped just shy of Ruka. On closer inspection, everyone could see that his arm was bandaged and he looked uncomfortable standing there. Mikan wanted him to look at her but his gaze remained fixed on Sumire's bed.

"Here you go," Subaru said. "Someone left these for you days ago but I completely forgot about them. They've kind of died a little I think. Sorry." Mikan's gaze remained fixed on Natsume as Subaru handed whatever was left for them to Sumire.

"These are repulsive," Sumire said.

Mikan's gaze fell to Sumire after her comment and she felt her heart accelerate. A point on her finger throbbed and she felt something tighten in her chest. It hurt to breath. Subaru had handed a bouquet of black roses to her. They were just as disturbing looking as the first time she saw them, only now they were withering and looked even worse.

Hastily, she reached forward and swatted them out of Sumire's hands. "Don't touch those," she cried frantically. They fell to the floor and Nonoko stepped away from them cautiously.

Some of them stared at Mikan like she had grown a second head, but she was still having trouble breathing and her finger throbbed. It throbbed like Hell.

Tsubasa finally put it together. "Those are the same roses that were on your parents' grave," he said explaining to everyone else. "That means they're from…"

"Persona," Mikan said. "Those are from Persona." She looked up and found Natsume staring at her. Of course she just had a mental episode.

Koko carefully found a spare cloth and picked up the bouquet between the fabric. "What should we do with them?"

"Burn them," Sumire sneered.

Koko shrugged and handed them off to Natsume. "You're the pyro," he said.

He stepped back from the group and held them away from his body. A flame engulfed the bouquet and then a familiar smell wafted through the room, rotting flesh.

Those that had had the misfortune of being close enough to a shadow attack knew the smell and got in defensive positions, looking for where the shadow came from. The others simply stood there holding their noses.

"What is that awful smell?" Misaki asked gagging.

"Where is it?" Koko screamed.

Mikan looked around for a shadow too but couldn't find one. Koko and Ruka seemed just as perplexed. She glanced back at Natsume who was glancing down at his still extended hand. Willowy wisps of smoke fell from his hand to the floor. His eyes suddenly grew wide.

"Hyuuga," Hotaru said through gritted teeth. "What was that?"

He dropped his hand and his eyes flashed to Mikan's before he abruptly turned and left.

Mikan turned to Ruka to gauge his reaction to Natsume's own reaction. She found him standing there with a confused look on his face. Natsume knew something, she was sure of it, and by the looks of everyone else, he was the only one to understand what had just happened.

"What just happened?" Tsubasa asked.

Sumire moved from her spot and stood over the burnt remains of the flowers. "Those flowers had the same smell as a shadow creature."

"What?" Anna squealed from her spot.

"You're sure those were from Persona?" Hotaru asked Mikan.

Mikan nodded. "Positive."

Hotaru turned to Ruka and Koko. "Persona," she said. "What's his ability?"

Koko frowned and Ruka responded. "Ability? He doesn't have one."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Ruka said. "He said so himself. He's never used one, right?" He turned to Koko and Sumire for confirmation.

"He doesn't have one," Koko said.

"You don't think he got them from that creep in the tunnels do you?" Sumire asked no one in particular.

Koko's eyes widened. "The guy that hurt you? I really hope not!"

"Hold on," Mikan said. "Shouldn't someone go after him?" She turned to Ruka. "He was gone for days and then he shows up and suddenly leaves."

"Oh. Right," Ruka said heading for the door.

"I'm going with you," Hotaru said, shocking everyone.

Ruka faltered in his step. "Wait. What?"

"I'm going with you," she repeated sternly.

Mikan gawked at her. Hotaru was usually the one who took a back seat to unexpected adventures. She wondered what had prompted her sudden interest in finding Natsume, the person she supposedly still wanted to murder.

Once Ruka and Hotaru left everyone else kind of awkwardly stood around for a while. They really didn't know what to do besides stand there and try to make sense of what just happened. Eventually they all went their own ways.

Mikan found herself seeking out Koko and Sumire after some time. She had to check with them.

"Where do you think he went?" she asked them.

"Who?" Koko asked flashing her a smile.

"You know who," she said glaring at him.

"Lover boy?" His smile grew wider as Mikan panicked. He said that right in front of Sumire.

"Oh relax," Sumire said rolling her eyes at Mikan. "Koko tells me everything."

"He probably went to murder Persona," Koko said casually. "What?" he said after Mikan gave him a terrified look. "He gave you like an infected flower or something. Of course he's mad!"

Koko's answer had just made her even more nervous and she found herself heading to her room to distract herself. The Fairytales book lay in the corner of her room where she had tossed it earlier that week. She bent to pick it up and flipped through the pages lightly. She opened the book to the first story and began to read.

The stories she reads are bizarre and far from ordinary fairytales. They are built on lies, deceptions, and jealousy. The book was not meant for children. She just finished a story about two towns connected by a glass bridge. In the two towns were two lovers, every night one would sneak over to the other's town. One night it was particularly dark out though and one of the lovers failed to see that the glass bridge had shattered halfway through his crossing and he fell to his death. The only way to revive the fallen lover was to smear ogre's blood over his remains so the girl went out to search for the ogres. She found them and got them drunk, then slit one in the night and drained its blood. With the ogre's blood she was able to revive her fallen lover.

Mikan found the story disturbing yet captivating. She could not figure out if it had a hidden lesson in it somewhere or not, and frankly she didn't want to know. The stories were just the right amount of crazy to distract her while Ruka and Hotaru chased Natsume down. They distracted her successfully for two days.

She was reading in her little alcove in the library when Tsubasa poked his head around the corner. She looked up from the story she was reading, _The Wonderful Birch,_ and eyed him.

"Someone's here to see you," he said.

She had been using Natsume's feather as a bookmark and placed it between the pages then moved to get up but he told her not to. They had followed him up the stairs apparently. She leaned back against the window. "Okay," she said.

"Later then," he called, his head disappearing.

She didn't expect who poked their head around the bookcase next. She blinked down at him a couple of times.

"Yoichi?" she said, curiously. She got up to bend down to his level and peered at him. "What're you doing here?"

He reached in his pocket for something and pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to her. She unfolded it and frowned. He had drawn her getting bitten by a snake now. How lovely. She stood so she could sit back down in her window seat but came face to face with Natsume or his chest since she was shorter than him.

"Oh!" she said surprised. She hadn't heard him approach, but of course he came with Yoichi. It made sense. Yoichi wouldn't come here alone.

He was so close she could feel the warmth of his body and smell fresh pine. She took a step back and saw that his hands were tucked into his pockets, and he stood there with a casualness she didn't expect. She found herself staring at him, it had been a while since they'd actually talked normally or anything really. Their last couple of encounters had been weird and consisted of them kissing, then the tunnels, her hugging him, and then the incident with the roses.

He wasn't saying anything and she found herself unable to keep his gaze. Eventually she motioned to Yoichi. "Is he here to diffuse the tension?"

"Tension?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said risking a glance at him. "You know, since you've been ignoring me or something." She saw his eyes narrow and had to admit to herself that she was shocked those words had come from her mouth. They were so direct and so unlike her.

She expected him to deny it. He didn't, instead she caught him smirking at her. "Do you want me to leave?"

No. She pursed her lips in frustration. No she didn't want him to leave. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of letting him know that though. "You can do whatever you want," she said taking her spot back up on the window sill. She roughly opened the book to where she had bookmarked it and grew mortified. She had forgotten. Tucked between the pages was his feather, the one she had been using as a bookmark.

She felt embarrassed, so, so, so embarrassed. A blush was creeping up her neck and she chanced a look at him. He was looking at the feather, the damn feather. She snapped the book closed and his eyes flashed to hers. She watched him as he noticed her embarrassment and flushed appearance. The fire in his eyes was so bright she actually wondered if there was a flame behind them.

She stood and took a step towards him. "You know," she started. "Everyone thinks I've made your life worse."

"Really?" he said. Mikan didn't like how he said it either. It was so casual and almost sarcastic. She was being serious, and here he was being sarcastic.

"Yeah, and it turns out they're right."

"Are they?" The fire in his eyes was still going strong, as he answered again like their conversation was some game, and she was losing terribly.

"Hotaru says you don't care for me," she said. "That you're bad for me."

As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them. His stance went rigid and his eyes turned guarded. She felt extremely disappointed in herself. The taunting and teasing were so much better than the person he just retreated back to. He tried to play it off with a small smirk, but she had seen the dramatic shift. It was too late.

"She's right you know," he said. "I am bad for you."

For some reason the words had a different effect on her than he probably wanted. They made her heart race, instead of scaring her away. She caught herself biting on her bottom lip and froze. His gaze had fallen to her lips and she desperately wanted to feel his lips again. She tried to bait him by biting it again. It worked, because the next thing she knew he was pointing her chin up with his finger. Her lips parted slightly and she was sure she looked like a wide-eyed idiot.

He dropped her chin then and smirked at her. Inside, her heart sank. He was totally playing with her. She guessed it was only fair, she had tried to bait him herself first. Still she pursed her lips in frustration.

"Yoichi," he said looking only at her. "Let's go."

Mikan crossed her arms and watched as the little boy reached for Natsume's hand and how he held it tightly. She watched their backs but Natsume stopped suddenly and turned to look at her. She furrowed her brows at him.

"Midnight," he said. "The River Bridge. Come alone."

She blinked at him. The River Bridge was probably about a ten minute flight from the temple and he wanted to meet her there. At midnight. Alone. She studied his expression trying to understand his intentions but came up short. Whatever this was, whatever was happening between them, this collision or simply a moment in time was captivating. Slowly, she nodded her head yes.

As she watched them leave she began to wonder just what exactly she had agreed to. Why the bridge of all places and why midnight? Her head swam with scenarios and ideas but ultimately she had no idea. And their encounter itself had been a first. He had come simply to see her, and it wasn't so he could yell at her or call her childish. Just what kind of alternate universe was this?

When Tsubasa found her an hour later she was still in a tizzy. She had made up countless scenarios in her head for why he wanted to meet her at midnight, some bizarre, some heated, and others downright horrifying.

"Sooooo," Tsubasa drawled on, catching her attention. "What's got you in a daze?"

Mikan turned to glare at him. He had on a half-smile that really irritated her. "Nothing," she lied.

"Yeah? So what'd the punk want?"

"He didn't really say." Which was actually the truth. "Yoichi drew me a picture though." She held it out to him and he grimaced at the drawing. He asked her if he could frame it, and she glared at him.

"Well want to join some of us for dinner and some celebratory drinks?"

"Drinks?" she asked. "What are we celebrating?"

"You know," he nudged her. "Just Misaki and I finally getting together."

They had ended up going out to a small little tavern in the market place that prided itself with the best broccoli cheddar soup in all of Cloud Alice. Mikan was surprised to see that Tsubasa and Misaki had invited Ruka, Koko and Sumire. They fit right in though, Sumire especially fit in with Anna and Nonoko's boy obsession. Mikan found herself watching the sun go down and her leg tapping away frantically. She had declined Tsubasa's offers of ale and opted for peppermint tea to keep her awake, even though her nerves probably would have done the job fine.

She decided to isolate herself in the corner since she felt like she couldn't hold a decent conversation. It didn't stop people from coming up to her though. Misaki tried to get her to dance and Koko tried to entertain her by providing the inner dialogue of two angels that looked like they were on their first date. Eventually Ruka stumbled his way over to her.

"Tsubasa keeps shoving drinks on me," he slurred a little bit, placing a hand on her shaking knee causing her to stop.

She raised a brow at him. "You okay?"

He nodded and she noticed his eyes were a little glazed. "Are you?"

She smiled. "Of course, just a little distracted, sorry."

"Is it Natsume?" he asked her.

"No! No." It was a lie of course, but she didn't want to talk about him right now.

He laughed then. "Oh good. I was afraid it was."

She smiled weakly at him.

"You know," he said. "I talked to Hotaru about him." He swayed for a moment in his seat and Mikan reached out to steady him. "About Natsume."

"What about?" She tried to play it off as mild curiosity.

"His methods are unusual, but he means well. Everything just seems harder for him. He's been dealt a shitty hand and plays the only cards he can."

"It's some card game," Mikan said.

Ruka hiccupped suddenly and Mikan thought it was time to cut him off. "She's acknowledged that he was never trying to hurt you." He moved to squeeze her shoulder. "She said she'd give him one more chance."

Mikan's face must have been pure shock because Ruka commented on it. "I couldn't believe it either," he said. Mikan would have to thank her best friend later.

A small glass filled with amber liquid was sloppily placed down on the table they were sharing.

"That's for you Ruka!" Tsubasa called, swinging his arm around his shoulders.

Ruka stared mortified at it.

"Tsubasa," Mikan said critically, "he's about to pass out."

"Nonsense," he said. "I bought this for him, he's gotta drink it."

Ruka clumsily reached for the glass and Mikan swatted his hand away. She shot a glare at Tsubasa before she threw the amber liquid back into her own throat. It burned as it went down and she felt tears sting her eyes.

When she had finished choking it down she was met with stunned faces from both of them. "What was that?" Mikan asked.

"Dunno," Tsubasa shrugged. "I asked for his strongest stuff." He motioned to the bar tender as if they were old friends.

The taste hung in her mouth and she stood, as she stood shivers shook her body. She needed to wash the taste down with something so she ordered another peppermint tea.

"How about another?" Tsubasa asked her.

"One's enough," Mikan said.

A slumping noise came from behind her and she turned to see Ruka fall off his seat. She downed the tea quickly and helped him up. Koko came too but opted for laughing at him instead of helping him up.

"We should get him home," Mikan said, trying to pull him up.

"The night is young!" Koko sang.

"Yeah it's only nearly midnight!" Tsubasa called.

"What?" Mikan dropped Ruka and he fell back to the floor with a groan. "I have to go."

"Go?" Tsubasa asked. "Go where?"

Mikan thought it over for a moment. "Home," she lied. "Sorry, Koko can you take care of him?" She motioned to Ruka.

"I don't want to babysit!" he called after her as she ran for the door.

She popped out her wings and took flight. The wind was excruciatingly icy that night, and it felt like her blood was freezing as she flew. She didn't have time to change or remotely compose herself and she grew frustrated with herself. How had she let the time escape her like that? The flight would be longer coming from the market place too than if she had left from the temple.

She veered left towards the river and could see a faint outline of the bridge in the distance. She was close. She beat her wings faster and zipped towards it. She slowed significantly as she got closer, close enough to make out his frame and see him leaning over the stone railing. She landed just outside of the bridge's entrance. It wasn't a really graceful landing but it also wasn't bad either. She was too cold to care and as she walked toward him she could feel the stiffness of her body. He better have a good reason for wanting to meet out here in the bitter cold.

She found herself crossing her arms as she slowly walked over to him. She stood apart from him and waited. She took in his appearance, he had on a different jacket since the one he had given her had been ripped to shreds. It was still black but looked sharper and crisp and of course he had it unbuttoned like it wasn't cold out at all. His body actually looked relaxed.

He didn't look towards her, he just continued to look out over the bridge. After sometime he finally spoke. His voice was soft and composed. "I used to take Aoi here," he said.

Mikan's eyes widened and she couldn't hide the small gasp that came from her. He never spoke of such things before, especially not his sister.

"She loved coming here," he continued. "The river freezes over clear, she used to be amazed by it, and being able to see everything so clearly."

She mirrored his position on the railing and looked out at the river. It was frozen over and it was clear. So clear that all the rocks were visible in the moonlight. It took her breath away. "It's beautiful," she whispered.

"Yes," he said, and when Mikan turned her head to look at him he wasn't looking out over the bridge anymore, but instead at her. His eyes were darker in the moonlight but still a deep red and she found herself lost in them. Until a shiver shook her body and she became aware of how cold she really was.

He casually lit a flame and held it in his palm. Mikan watched as it cracked and as his fingers played with the fire making it dance. It illuminated the features on his face and was reflected in his eyes. She felt herself lean towards the warmth. Then suddenly she found herself pushing his hand down. He had to quickly snuff the flame so it wouldn't burn her. He stared bewildered at her.

"What are you doing?" she asked, her heart beat fast. "Don't waste that on me, especially if it drains your energy."

His brows furrowed. "A little flame won't hurt me."

"Still," she said.

"You're cold," he said.

She rolled her eyes at him. "Yeah well some of us don't radiate heat like you." She gestured to his body and then froze. He had raised his eyebrows at her comment.

"Radiate heat?" he repeated.

She found herself flushing at his question, thankful that the cold and night could somewhat hide it. Natsume moved from his position and stood in front of her. She backed up until her back hit the railing and she was forced to lean back against it. She was out of room but he still kept moving towards her. He raised his arms and placed two hands on either side of her against the railing. He had effectively trapped and pinned her in that spot. Their bodies were so close all she had to do was take one step to close the gap. She was right about his unnatural body heat. She could feel it surrounding her.

She stood trapped by his arms, not that she was complaining. She watched as he removed one hand to reach inside his jacket. Her eyes widened as he pulled out the white feather she had given him. It almost sparkled in the moonlight. She looked down at it and then met his eyes. She felt like she was suffocating in his presence, his heat, his eyes, his smell. Her heart pounded so hard.

"When you gave this to me you didn't know what it meant." He twirled the feather between his fingers. "You know now. Do you want it back?"

Mikan had to take a breath to steady herself. She had not expected that, definitely not at all. First she was surprised he had even asked. Second, she wished she could give him a thousand of her feathers. She searched his eyes but she had no idea what they were trying to say. She whispered her response, "No."

His eyes closed and he took a deep breath, she watched his chest rise and fall. Her right hand raised to his cheek and his eyes flashed open. She jerked it back, her hand was probably cold and had shocked him. She muttered an apology to him as he pocketed her feather and his hand fell back into place on the railing, trapping her again.

"You're unusually quiet," he said.

She fidgeted slightly. "I uh… wanted to…" She wanted him to kiss her. She wanted to pin her body against his and run her hands all up over him. "I was going to say…" Her eyes trailed to his lips and she unconsciously bit her bottom lip. Her face fell, when she realized what she had just done. She met his eyes and she knew he had perfectly seen what she had done. He rose his eyebrows and a slight smirk played on his lips. He knew what she wanted yet he didn't act on it.

He moved his hands closer on the railing to her and his arms grazed hers lightly. "What did you want?" he asked her calmly.

She took a deep breath and let it out. "Um…"

He furrowed his brows at her. "You smell like peppermint," he said, and she lost it.

She pushed herself off the bridge and closed the gap. She stood on tiptoes, her lips found his and her hands curled around his sides and to his back. She tried pulling him closer but he wouldn't budge. She yanked twice before he finally pulled her closer. His hands were at her waist and trailed along the skin just beneath the hem of her shirt. His fingers felt like fire on her skin.

She felt his body flush against hers and the heat enveloping her and warming her to her core. Their lips moved against each other's softly and then he suddenly pulled away. Mikan felt slightly dizzy from his fiery touch and the scent of pine and cinnamon.

"You're so short," he said with finality.

She hesitated. "What?"

He didn't answer her. Instead he gripped her around her waist and lifted her so she was sitting on the edge of the bridge. She didn't particularly like it because it felt like she could fall back at any moment. She found herself gripping his jacket with a death grip to keep herself from falling. As she was grasping for a better grip he titled her head towards him and he brushed his lips against hers once more. She tangled her arms around his neck and wrapped her legs around his waist for security.

They kissed for some time before Mikan was the one to pull away. She had to, otherwise the kiss would have made her drunk. She felt like her whole body was intoxicated by him whereas he seemed almost completely composed. The only thing that wasn't were his eyes, they were flickering in the night.

She tried to contain her frantic heart beat that he could probably feel from underneath his hand on her neck and she took slow steady breaths.

"Mikan," he said and her pulse quickened even more. It was the first time she had ever really heard him call her by her name. It sounded beautiful coming from his lips. His eyes were dangerously stunning as he spoke. "I will never put you in danger again."


	22. When Hell Freezes Over

Hi everyone! I have gone back and edited chapters 1-21. I had some small errors, and issues that no one told me about! Nothing plot-wise has changed, so there's no need to re-read. Only some little details have been edited or modified. Thanks for all the support. So enough chat. Here's chapter 22!

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-Two: When Hell Freezes Over**

Mikan woke up around the same time everyone else did, way late in the morning. Her late wake up time was because her nerves wouldn't let her sleep, everyone else was simply hungover. Everyone had crashed at the temple instead of going to their respective homes and Anna had decided to whip up a pretty nice meal for everyone. When Mikan had taken a seat across from Anna she noticed the glazed eyes and stony expressions that littered the table.

"You're awfully radiant today Mikan," Anna said. "Did something happen?"

"Huh?" Mikan asked her, after all she was still in her own little world.

"I said you look really happy, did something happen?"

Mikan shrugged it off. "Who knows?" Still, she couldn't hide the smile that crept onto her face. "Some of you guys have seen better days though," she glanced to some figures around the table.

Tsubasa had his palm against his forehead and he stared off into the distance. Ruka was donning a massive headache and had his head on the table. Koko appeared fine, he just talked less and seemed to be looking around at everything. Hotaru was still the picture of composure and Sumire simply looked like the whole world irritated her.

"Not so loud Mikan," Tsubasa said from beside her.

"You guys should have moderated yourselves," Nonoko said. "Like Misaki, Anna, Hotaru and me. See? We're perfectly fine."

"Yeah?" Tsubasa glared. "Well, what fun is that?"

"Your headache then," Nonoko said shrugging.

Anna stood and asked if anyone wanted to help her gather the food from the kitchen. Mikan and Misaki were the only ones to offer their assistance. So the three girls gathered the food from the kitchen and brought it out to the rest of them. Anna had really gone all out. Eggs, toast, jams and jellies, bacon, fruits, and a large pot of coffee for everyone.

She stood and beamed down at her work as Misaki and Mikan sat back down.

"You're a Goddess Anna," Tsubasa said worshipping her.

"I know," she replied.

"Oh! I forgot the butter." She spun on her heel to head back to the kitchen but froze. "Oh," she said surprised.

Mikan and a few others turned to see what surprised her and Mikan found herself being the most surprised of all. Natsume dressed in white was striding over to them like he owned the damn place. She finished shoving her bite of toast down her throat and she felt her cheeks betray her with color. What was he doing there? She definitely didn't expect him to come around so soon, especially after their little moment last night. It was way too soon.

Koko stood from his seat and called out to him. "Natsume! What brings you here?" Mikan swore she could feel Koko eye her back but she didn't turn to confirm it.

He closed the gap between himself and the group and stood just in front of Mikan. He held out a folded piece of paper to her face. "Delivery," he said casually.

Mikan stared dumbly back at him. Did he say delivery? He really didn't come all the way over here to give her a piece of paper did he? She narrowed her eyes at him and swore he had some ulterior motive behind this visit. She reached out for the folded paper cautiously and from the corner of her eye she saw Anna's mouth pop open into a small 'o.' Her eyes were calculating and any minute she would put two and two together. Anna was keenly observant about boy stuff.

Mikan took the paper and unfolded it in her lap, she could feel others lean in to get a glimpse as well. Her heart accelerated as she saw what it was. It was a child's drawing, obviously done by Yoichi, but what is was of made her fumble to close it as quickly as she could. He had drawn two angels embracing on a bridge and it was pretty obvious who they were because he drew their damn wings. That means that Natsume told a four year old what they had done and she felt mortified.

She quickly glanced around her to see what damage it had done. Anna had clearly seen the full picture and her mouth now hung open fully, Tsubasa had a frown on his face and she couldn't discern what he saw but other than that she realized she had hid it before anyone else had seen.

"Troubling news?" Natsume asked smirking.

She shot a heated glare at him. "No," she said pointedly. "Didn't you look at it?"

"No. Should I have?" he asked. There was a very clear fire in his eyes, they were teasing her.

"Mikan," Anna said softly.

"What are you doing here?" Mikan shot hotly at him.

"Yeah!" Koko trilled. "Hey wait. Why didn't you come out with us last night?"

Natume turned his full attention to Koko. "I had somewhere to be."

"Mikan," Anna tried again. "Oh my God."

Mikan finally looked to Anna. Anna's eyes were huge saucers and were shooting daggers at her. Written on those daggers were a clear _I know what you did last night_ message.

"Can I talk to you?" Anna asked her. "You know in the kitchen?"

"No," said Mikan quickly spinning in her seat to continue shoving her face with food.

"Can I talk to you in the kitchen?" Koko asked.

Mikan stared at him. "What? No."

"Can he talk to you in the kitchen?" Koko asked pointing to Natsume.

Mikan choked on her drink. "What?" she asked through coughs. "No."

"Mikan," Hotaru said coolly. Mikan's gaze flicked to hers and she felt her stomach flip. "Is something going on?"

"No," Mikan said quickly. "Nothing's going on!"

Tsubasa took that moment to try and pry the folded piece of paper from her hands, causing her to swat his prying hands away until she finally yelled at him to quit it.

"Soooo," Koko sang. "What are you really doing here Natsume?"

His eyes lingered on Mikan for a moment before traveling to Ruka's hunched over form. "I came for Ruka, but he seems preoccupied."

Anna almost jumped out of her skin. "Do you want to join us?"

Everyone was completely shocked at Anna's question. Koko's grin froze on his face in shock and Misaki's toast fell out of her mouth. Mikan turned in her seat to gauge Natsume's reaction.

He turned politely towards a smiling Anna and Mikan saw her look him up and down as if she was fully admiring how gorgeous he really was. "No. I already ate." The way he answered her was bizarre, it was a mixture of being curt and sincere. Then he turned to leave.

"See you around!" Koko called to him.

Natsume raised two fingers over his shoulder and then said, "I'll be around. Let me know when he's awake."

No one spoke until he was fully out of sight.

"Did that just happen?" Nonoko asked excitedly.

"Yes!" Anna practically jumped out of her skin.

"Wait," Mikan said. "Did what just happened?"

"He was like a normal person," Anna said.

"He's always been a normal person," Koko said pointing his fork at her. "Just ask Ruka. He swears by it." Ruka stirred in his spot at the mention of his name.

"Maybe for you," Anna retorted, "but that was completely different. He was like a different person. He was like—"

"Tame," Nonoko finished for her.

"Yes! Tame," Anna nodded "What happened to him?" Anna shot a pointed gaze at Mikan.

Koko's eyes shifted to Mikan too and she shot him a despicable look back that did not go unnoticed by Hotaru.

Mikan really wanted to excuse herself to go find him and question him about the drawing and just what he was thinking but she knew they would all talk if she just up and left. She would have to wait it out for a little bit. She deiced to wait until someone else excused themselves and then she would follow suit.

No one seemed to be in a hurry though and they all ate painfully slow. Her coffee cup was on its second filling and she had to restrain herself from gulping it all down. She nodded along with the conversation and contributed a few times to keep up appearances, but really she wondered if she was fooling anyone.

Hotaru finally excused herself and Mikan shot to her feet too mumbling some excuse about the library. She didn't go to the library though instead she went looking for Natsume. She had no idea where he would be waiting though. He wasn't in the lobby, the pews, the library, the tombs, she even checked her bedroom but he wasn't there. She was sure she had checked every place they had ever been together at the temple, but there was no sight of him. She was about to give up when Tsubasa found her peeking into a random room.

"You're really bad at finding things, you know?"

She tried lying. "I'm not looking for anything."

He snorted at her. "Yeah right. He's wandering around in the art room."

Her eyes widened. She hadn't checked that place, mainly because it was so boring to her and no one ever really went there. "Oh," she said simply.

"You're welcome," he said sarcastically.

So she made her way to where he said and found him actually exiting the art room when she got there. Their eyes met and instead of stopping he just kept walking.

She frowned and called out to him but he didn't stop so she ran to catch up to him. When she caught up to him she tugged on his arm and pulled him into a nearby room that was thankfully empty. She pulled out the drawing he had given her earlier and waved it in his face.

"What's with this?" she asked hotly, noticing his smug expression.

"What do you mean?" he asked feigning confusion.

"You told Yoichi about," she hesitated, "about last night."

He shrugged. "He asked me what I did last night."

"And you told him?" she cried.

"No," he said deliberately. "I only told him I went to the bridge. He drew the rest."

Mikan's eyes narrowed. "That's a lie."

"Do you want me to give it back to him? He'll be so crushed."

"No," she growled.

"All right then," he said and she watched his eyes trail around the room. "You know, if you wanted to be in a room alone with me all you had to do was ask. There was no need to be so forceful."

"What?" She peeled her eyes off him and looked around the room. A bed was pushed to the side and there was a desk on the other wall. It mirrored the room Koko had stayed in previously. Of course she had pushed him into such a room. Taking a deep breath she decided to play his own game. "Are you complaining?" she asked, hoping it came off playfully.

His reaction was better than she expected as she watched his eyebrows raise at her question. She wondered what else she could ask him that would provoke a response from him. "We're alone, so what do you want to do?" she asked.

He leaned against the wall casually. "I'm just waiting for Ruka to wake up."

So her plan backfired. His response was definitely not what she expected and if she was a balloon she would have deflated. She had made up her mind earlier that she was not going to be the first one to make a move, but he was proving to be very difficult at the moment. He was far too teasing and he probably liked making her squirm.

She tried a different approach. She smiled brightly at him and turned to the door. "All right, well have fun waiting alone then." She was halfway out the door when she saw a flustered Misaki call out to her down the hall, and she also felt Natsume tug her back into the room roughly.

Just as Natsume pulled her towards him Misaki poked her head through the door.

"Mikan!" she said panting. "Oh. Uh."

Mikan flushed as Misaki took in their appearance. She was basically sprawled out in his arms so she quickly removed herself. Natsume acted as cool as ever and didn't seem shaken by the disturbance at all.

"Persona's here," she said nervously.

"What?" Mikan's face fell. "Why's he here?" Mikan asked.

"I don't know, but he looks really pissed off according to Tsubasa."

"That's understandable," Natsume said.

"How so?" Mikan asked rounding on him.

"I've been ignoring him," he said calmly.

"There's more," Misaki added. "He wants to see you Mikan."

"Me? Why me?"

"I don't know," she said. "What should we do?"

"I'll go see what he wants I guess." She moved towards the door but Natsume pulled her back.

"There's not a chance in Hell that I'm going to let that happen," he said firmly.

"What then? You're going to talk to him? I thought you were ignoring him."

He looked directly at her then and she felt her heart skip a beat. It was such an intense look. "I meant what I said last night," he said.

He said a lot last night amongst all the kissing and touching. The biggest thing he said though was about not putting her in danger again. Damn. Persona was dangerous, which would explain why he said that.

She took a deep breath. "Okay, what if I go find out what he wants and you just stay out of sight around the corner?"

"No," he said.

She frowned. "Too bad I'm not taking 'no' for an answer."

They appeared to be at a stalemate. He eventually agreed with a ton of reluctance as long as she didn't provoke him.

Misaki led them both down the hall and into the entranceway where Persona was waiting. Mikan stopped before they turned the corner to prevent Natsume from following any further. He struggled against staying put for a moment as Mikan and Misaki waited for him to stop fighting himself. His fists were clenched and he looked absolutely murderous. Mikan tried to offer him an encouraging smile which he returned with a glare.

She took one step away from him before he suddenly tugged her back towards him and pulled her face to his and kissed her. It was rough and full of desperation. It was so quick that Mikan or Misaki barely had time to react to it before it was over. Mikan turned reluctantly from him and turned the corner. She held Misaki back so she could watch Natsume and keep him at bay. It probably wouldn't be too effective but she had to try something.

A severely pissed off looking Persona was waiting for her in the doorway. Koko, Sumire, and Tsubasa stood off to the side. She walked right up to him and noticed he looked paler than usual under the scowl he wore.

"How nice of you to join us," he said. His voice was sharp and cut through the air.

"What do you want?" she asked, bitterly.

"I'm looking for my black cat," he said. "You haven't seen him have you?"

"He's not here," she lied.

"No matter," he said calmly. "You'll do fine."

Mikan felt herself start to panic, she crossed her arms protectively over her chest.

"I actually came for you," he explained. Tsubasa made to move towards him but Koko held him back, knowing full well that he was no match for Persona.

If she wasn't full fledge panicking before she was now. "Why?"

Something flickered in his eyes. "You have something I need."

Something he needed? She had nothing of importance. "And what exactly is that?"

"Your ignorance is stunning," he said. "Sweet, sweet charming little Aoi has been missing her brother terribly, you know."

Mikan snapped her eyes to him. "What that guy who mutilates angel wings isn't good company?" she asked through gritted teeth. It was a dangerous thing to say, very dangerous as his eyes flashed with anger.

He played it off. "I'm prepared to offer you a trade," he said.

There was nothing in the world that would cause her to strike a deal with this man. Hell itself would have to freeze over and the sky would have to fall before that ever happened. She waited for his ridiculous offer.

"Aoi," he said slowly, "for you." Then Mikan felt herself shatter. It was as if Hell had frozen over, and the sky fell at the same time. She would do anything to get Aoi back, just so that Natsume could be with her, but he had asked for her. Mikan felt her knees shake and her heart thrummed in her ears. Her mouth felt dry.

"I'll give you one day," Persona said walking out the door. She could only stare after him and watch as the door clicked shut.

Footsteps echoed from behind her and the temperature in the room turned twenty degrees warmer. She turned to see Natsume heading right towards her. His eyes were infernos and his expression was hard, one of pure rage. He walked right by her without a glance and steered towards the door. His autopilot was set to kill.

Mikan felt her legs waver and she collapsed to the floor. Misaki quickly rushed to her side and Mikan turned to see Koko rush to Natsume. Natsume shoved him out of the way and Koko once again tried to block his path.

"Natsume!" Koko cried. "Stop, man. Just stop."

Koko struggled against him and tried to restrain him to no luck. He was fighting a losing battle until Tsubasa decided to intervene. The two pushed against Natsume and struggled to hold him back. There were a lot of frustrated groans and punches. Koko and Tsubasa paled miserably to Natsume's rage and strength.

Mikan heard Misaki trying to comfort her but she couldn't focus on it. She felt paralyzed from Persona's words and watching the guys fight. Her stomach was in knots, her eyes unfocused, her whole body shook, and her head was throbbing. She felt hot tears fall down her face and Misaki grew alarmed. Why? Why did he want her? Misaki tried whispering to her that things would be okay and that no one would ever trade her over to him but it didn't help. Nothing helped. Her for Aoi. Of course Natsume would pick Aoi. She would pick Aoi.

New pairs of footsteps entered the hall and rushed past her. They entered the fray.

"Natsume!" Mikan recognized it as Ruka's voice and she turned her head towards him. He must have finally recovered. "Natsume," he said again with severity. Mikan found herself gasping as Ruka deflected a punch that was dangerously close to his face. He pulled Natsume's arm down which caused him to come up from his rage. Natsume yanked himself from everyone's grasp and took a step back. Mikan watched with bated breath as he controlled his anger. His body relaxed a nudge, the temperature of the room dropped and his eyes only flickered instead of being consumed by a full flame. He glared at Ruka.

"What's going on?" Ruka dared to ask.

Everyone stayed quiet as he looked around the room for an explanation. Mikan shakily stood to her feet with the help of Misaki.

She took a deep breath before she answered him. "Persona offered me a trade," she said. "Me for Aoi."

"What?" Ruka asked hoarsely. He rounded on Natsume. "You didn't take it did you?"

Natsume shot him a heated look. "Of course not."

None of this was okay. Persona was playing with them, all of their feelings. He had the one thing that could break everything. His dirty tricks and lies had finally broken the composure everyone held onto so tightly. Her life for Aoi's. How could anyone even bargain with that? There was no way. Mikan wouldn't be able to live with herself if she refused his offer. Natsume would never get Aoi again if that happened. She couldn't allow that. This was Natsume's only chance to get her back.

And so Mikan surprised herself by deciding her fate. "Take it," she whispered.

All eyes turned to her.

"What?" Misaki and Ruka cried in unison.

Mikan ignored them and spoke directly to Natsume who looked at her like it was the most painful thing in the world. "You've been looking for Aoi for years and now you have a chance to get her back. Take it."

"Mikan you can't be serious," Tsubasa said gravely.

"I am," she said gulping. "Look he said he needs me for something. He doesn't need Aoi. If it gets you out of dealing with him then it's a deal I have to take."

His eyes were so cold and narrowed in anger. Mikan found it hard to look at them but she fought through it to prove that she was serious about her decision. "Natsume…" She tried to reach him and tried to remain confident.

"No," he said harshly, then he turned and left.


	23. Broken Wings

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Broken Wings**

"This is my decision!" Mikan cried. "Why can't you guys understand that?"

They were having an intervention, except this time it was for Mikan. She found herself being interrogated in an unused office that everyone had cornered her into.

"You're not thinking rationally, Mikan," Hotaru said.

"Yeah," Tsubasa said. "You don't trade a person for another person!"

"He said he needs me!" Mikan protested. "He doesn't need Aoi. Guys. Please. Why don't you understand this? This is the right thing to do!"

"That's even more of a reason for us to be against this," Hotaru pointed out. "Are you guys going to help or not?" Hotaru spat to a group in a corner.

Koko, Sumire, and Ruka all tensed and looked up from their hushed conversation. Ruka looked wearily at his friends and then took steps towards Mikan.

"Natsume already said no," he said. "There's no way he will be okay with any of this."

Mikan fumed. "Well then don't tell him! I'll go by myself."

"You aren't going anywhere near that guy," Hotaru said firmly. "If I have to tie you to your bed then so be it."

Mikan was not getting her way one bit. No one was agreeing with her. No one wanted to trade her for Aoi. She couldn't understand it. Aoi was the one thing they—he wanted since forever. She was a nobody, and if Persona ended up hurting Aoi because he couldn't get to her then she could only begin to imagine what pain it would cause Aoi and Natsume. Let alone herself, she couldn't live with that burden.

"You cannot control my life!" Mikan screamed at Hotaru. Her scream was so full of frustration that it caught everyone off guard.

Hotaru stared back at her best friend. "I am not letting you throw your life away for some guy with issues."

"What?" Mikan screamed. "I am not throwing it away!"

Tsubasa made a strange sound between a roar and scream, silencing the bickering. "Can we all just please calm down?"

Hotaru took a seat across from Mikan and silently fumed while Mikan took a couple deep breaths to calm herself.

"Good," Tsubasa said. "I think we should refocus. Let's try and figure out what he even wants from you."

"I don't know," Mikan said shooting him a look.

"Nothing at all Mikan?" Misaki asked. "Think hard, he's never said anything?"

"No!" Mikan growled out. She was beginning to get seriously annoyed with all this.

"Where's Natsume?" Tsubasa shot at Ruka. "He's gotta know something."

Ruka jumped slightly at Tsubasa's remark. "I don't—I don't know."

"Maybe he just wants her body," Sumire suggested. "Though I can't imagine why."

Mikan shot her an ugly look.

"What about the people Persona had you collect and find for him?" Hotaru asked.

"What about them?" Ruka asked.

"Did they have anything in common?"

Ruka turned to Sumrie and Koko. They tried to remember Persona's requests and anyone they had encountered.

"They were all different," Koko said after a while.

"Nothing really stuck out. Some had wealth, others didn't," Sumire added.

After hours of brainstorming, nothing had been determined and nothing had been accomplished. They knew nothing. Mikan couldn't shake their decisions and she was left to sulk in her room, with round the clock supervision. They were literally baby-sitting her so she wouldn't make a run for it.

They took turns and Mikan refused to talk to any of them. If they weren't going to be understanding then neither was she. Even as she fell asleep that night someone watched over her. When she woke the next morning, the day that Persona was supposedly coming for her, Ruka was there wide-awake and watching.

"Do you mind?" Mikan asked. "I want to change."

He stood embarrassed for a moment. "Ah, sorry. One second." Mikan waited as he poked his head out of her door and she began to plan her escape. She could easily sneak out the window while he waited for her to change. That opportunity never came though, instead Misaki took Ruka's place.

"Can't get rid of us that easily, Kiddo!" Misaki said too cheerfully.

Mikan groaned and changed into some new clothes. When she was done she made for the door, but Misaki stopped her.

"What?" Mikan snapped. "Is it a crime to get food now?"

Misaki relaxed a little at her remark and the two left to go to the kitchen. Upon arriving at the food hall, Mikan immediately wanted to turn around. Everyone was there, gathered around a single table. Some appeared nervous, while others like Hotaru and Sumire seemed indifferent and almost bored. Koko strangely sat frozen in his seat, almost like he was a statue, his eyes hardly moved.

Mikan glared at everyone individually before she decided against eating. As she was turning to leave her gaze fell on a figure that was leaning against the wall. His gaze was hot on hers and she felt herself get uneasy. The uneasiness intensified as he removed himself from the wall and walked right towards her. She cursed herself for making eye contact.

Natsume strode across the hall noiselessly. His gaze bore into hers as he neared her. She found herself unable to maintain eye contact and settled for looking at the floor.

"We need to talk," he said. It wasn't up for debate, it was a demand.

Mikan shot her eyes to his, crossed her arms and roughly sat down in the nearest seat, startling the man eating across from her. Natsume eyed the man before he took a seat next to her, and angled his body towards hers and waited.

She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of obliging him. She had decided that she would remain firm on her decision. Mikan watched as Misaki awkwardly stood beside them for a moment before deciding to sit down with everyone else.

"I am not letting you trade your life for Aoi's," Natsume said quietly.

Mikan's eyes shot to his. "But she's your sister."

Natsume's expression looked sad. "I haven't seen Aoi in years. I don't even know if she's still..."

"She's alive," Mikan insisted.

"The room we found, she had been there, but it had been abandoned for a long time. No one could survive down in a place like that for that long."

"Natsume," Mikan started.

"I am not going to lose someone else." His whole demeanor had changed with that one statement. He was confident, determined and could not be deterred. Mikan felt weak to her knees at his declaration. "I will not let Persona have you."

"What are you going to do?" Mikan asked weakly.

"Whatever it takes." His eyes were so intense that Mikan could only gawk at him.

She reached out to him and placed her hand on his arm. "I—I don't know what he wants." Her voice wavered and she started to feel scared for herself. What if he succeeds in getting her? What would he do to her? "Why does he want me?" She tried blinking back the tears that were forming in her eyes.

Natsume shifted in his seat like he was about to touch her but he stopped short when Tsubasa walked up to them.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything," he said casually. "But I was wondering what exactly our plan was? You know, when Persona comes looking for her."

Natsume stood and Mikan felt her hand fall from his arm. She too stood and followed him to the rest of the group.

"Are we just going to lock her up somewhere in the temple?" Misaki asked.

"We could," Hotaru said.

"We need some sort of advantage over him," Ruka suggested.

"Yeah but what?" Tsubasa asked.

"What if we moved her?" Koko asked, finally moving.

"Move her?" Hotaru's eyes narrowed in his direction.

"Yeah," Koko said flatly. "He's expecting her to be here, but if we take a walk and hide her somewhere else..."

Ruka turned to Natsume and said, "It could work."

"I don't like it," Natsume said.

"Me either," Hotaru said.

"I have the perfect place," Koko insisted.

"Where?" Natsume asked.

"Just past that little cemetery, where your parents are buried. There are some empty houses over there."

Mikan's eyes widened in recognition. There were empty houses by the cemetery her parents were buried in so that meant Natsume's parents were buried in the same one. She had no idea they had such a connection.

"I say go for it," Sumire said.

"What other choice do we have?" Ruka added.

With some hesitation, Hotaru finally agreed and then Natsume after even more hesitation. They decided to leave in roughly an hour, which caused Mikan to panic. She had no idea what to do or what to expect. She found herself standing by the main door with everyone else an hour later, uneasy and restless. They decided walking was easier, since you could easily spot someone in the sky. A lot of people wanted to tag along to help but they ultimately decided that less was better. Misaki and had gotten the shaft, much to Tsubasa's pleas, so along with him, Ruka, Koko, Sumire, Natsume, and an insistent Hotaru were tasked with escorting her. Mikan still felt like it was an unnecessary amount of people.

Koko took the lead with Sumire, then Mikan, Tsubasa and Natsume, and tailing them was Ruka and Hotaru. They spread themselves out far enough to not cause suspicion but remained close enough to remain in each other's sights.

They kept their hoods up and were thankful that the wind was strong and cold enough to warrant them in the first place. The sun was pale yellow and hidden behind a haze of grey, snow fell lightly onto the already blanketed ground. It would have been a perfect day to stay inside.

Mikan's eyes darted back and forth looking for anyone or anything suspicious. Everything looked suspicious to her though so it made her nerves even worse. Animals would rustle in the foliage, making her tense and jumpy, and voices from other angels out and about made her heart race.

Koko had told them before they left that a small field separated the cemetery from the abandoned house, but it shouldn't be a concern as it was easy to cross. They walked in silence. Occasionally Tsubasa would give Mikan a thumbs up but she never returned the gesture. She found herself constantly glancing towards Natsume. His eyes remained forward and fixed on the path in front of them though.

Mikan felt slightly better when they reached the cemetery. They were close. Close to where she could hide out, and then determine what their next move would be. If anything, it would at least give them some time to plan. There had to be some way to get rid of Persona and get Aoi back at the same time.

The cemetery was empty and still when they approached it. It looked almost peaceful under a blanket of untouched snow. Mikan could see her parents' grave and wished that they could have been there to protect her, and to tell her that everything would be okay. Risking another glance at Natsume, she noticed his gaze was no longer on the path ahead of them, but on a pair of gravestones. She could only guess that they belonged to his parents.

She fell back a little from him and her eyes scanned beyond the cemetery. A small childlike laugh rang out grabbing her attention and she saw a little girl playing alone in the field near some trees just up ahead. Mikan was reminded of the times when she used to play out in the field with her grandpa's supervision. She took a final look back at the cemetery and let her gaze linger for far too long.

When she turned around she ran straight into Natsume's back. He stood frozen. She regained her footing and looked around wondering what caught his attention. Her gaze followed his and she noticed he was staring at the little girl. His eyes were so wide, and Mikan wondered what was going on.

She heard rushed footsteps from behind her and Ruka was suddenly by his side. His expression was one of disbelief. Slowly, he raised a hand and placed it on Natsume's shoulder. His voice was like a whisper when he finally spoke, it floated along with the wind and made Mikan's heart skip a beat. "Aoi," he said.

Mikan glanced again at the little girl and looked at her closely. It was unmistakable, she wondered how she hadn't seen it before. They had the same colored hair and eyes. Aoi's eyes were the same red, bright enough to see from their distance. She was twirling and laughing, like she was the main performance in a big dance.

Up ahead, Sumire had slowed significantly too, but Koko kept walking, as if he was in a trance. Ruka's whisper must have woken Natsume from his trance, because he immediately headed right towards her dancing figure. Everyone followed.

"Wait," Tsubasa called out. "What's going on?"

No one answered him, and he was left to just follow everyone else. Aoi was alive, and she was safe. They just had to reach her. It was so simple. Too good to be true.

They were so close to her now that when someone stepped out from the shelter of the trees they were completely caught off guard. He had the biggest scowl on his face ever, like being there was the last thing he would ever want to do.

"Holy Hell," Sumire shrieked.

It was the creep from the tunnels. He eyed Mikan and Sumire. "You two must have a guardian angel looking over you," he said coldly.

"Mihara, enough." Mikan tensed at the new voice from within the trees, it was unmistakably Persona's. Sure enough, he soon removed himself from their shadows and stood next to Aoi and Mihara.

Natsume's eyes raged with fire and he glared at Persona. He took one step forward and conjured a flame in each hand. "Persona," he said through gritted teeth. "I'm going to kill you."

"There's no need for violence, Natsume," Persona said calmly.

"This ends now," Natsume said, aiming his flames.

"I'm afraid that will not be the case," Persona said. He gingerly placed a hand on Aoi's shoulder and commanded her attention. "Aoi dear, how'd you like to see your big brother?"

"My brother?" Aoi asked dazed.

"Yes, my kitten. He came all this way to see you," Persona said with a malicious smile.

"Aoi," Natsume called to her.

Aoi turned her head to Natsume's voice and backed up a little, hiding behind Persona's leg. Her eyes traveled to the flames he held in his hand and they grew wide with fear. She looked warily at Natsume, almost as if she didn't recognize him.

"Aoi," Natsume tried calling to her again, softer, but Aoi sunk behind Persona's leg more. "Aoi," he called again desperately, dousing his flames.

"Persona, you snake!" Ruka called. "What did you do to her?"

Persona shrugged off the question. "Just a little precaution," he started. "In case you tried to pull a fast one on me. I did have a little help though." Persona's eyes flickered mischievously before they landed on Koko. "You were such a magnificent pawn, Koko."

Everyone's eyes flashed to a motionless Koko before a new voice broke the silence.

"Of course," it said, "he had no idea what he was doing." Reo stepped out from the trees, with a smug look plastered on his face, and joined the trio.

Aoi suddenly removed herself from Persona's legs and ran to him. She hugged his leg and cried out, "Reo! Brother, I've missed you."

Natsume's façade broke in that moment. His little sister thought Reo was her brother, and she feared him. His mind raced and he felt like shattering.

Sumire had paled, finally understanding what game Persona was playing. "You brainwashed Koko, you made him take us here, you wiped Aoi's memory!"

"Very good, Sumire," Persona praised her. "You always were pretty perceptive. Now, come Koko."

Koko walked towards them in silence. He stopped just before Reo. "Can't we have more fun with him?" Reo begged.

"There's no need," Persona started, "he's done all that we needed him to do."

Reo huffed in irritation and sneered at Koko. "Fine," he spat. "Wake up you idiot."

As Reo's compulsion left Koko's clouded mind, Sumire called out to him. "Koko!"

He blinked rapidly and then moved to punch Reo in the face, but he quickly sidestepped him.

"Koko! Get over here, now!" Sumire demanded.

The gang watched as Koko quickly turned around and stared at all his friends. He had betrayed them. His face fell and for the first time he was at a loss for words. "I don't—I can't—I'm so sorry. I couldn't fight it," he said weakly. He walked, full of shame, back over to his friends.

"Now that we've exchanged pleasantries," Persona said. "Let's begin." His gaze traveled to Mikan's, who was having a hard time understanding everything that was going on. "If you will," he said, waving her over.

Her heart thrummed in her chest as Persona beckoned for her. She took one step forward before Hotaru suddenly halted her with her arm.

"Hotaru—" Mikan started.

"Hold on," Hotaru said. "Tell me," she said to Persona. "What is it she has that you so desperately need?"

Persona stared at Hotaru for a minute, as if he was deciding to tell her or not. Eventually he let out a short chuckle. "Angel abilities are a curious thing. Are they not?"

"Don't change the subject!" Ruka spat at Persona.

"He's not," Hotaru said pointedly, causing the others to glance at her.

"What?" Ruka asked confused.

"Mikan," Hotaru explained. "You are interested in Mikan's ability."

"Something like that," Persona said eyeing Hotaru.

"A—Ability?" Mikan asked. "I don't have an ability."

"An ability's power is presented through one's wings," Hotaru explained.

"What?" Mikan asked breathlessly. "I have an ability? But… How?"

"Mikan," Hotaru said. "Your ability manifested or awoke when you got your wings." Hotaru smiled weakly at her best friend. Ruka and Sumire stared open-mouthed at Mikan.

"Very clever," Persona said through gritted teeth. "Not many angels realize where abilities come from. Now then, come here my kitten."

Mikan was suddenly jerked to her left. She stumbled and fell into Natsume's grip. His grip was hot and Mikan could feel the hatred rolling off of him in waves. "She's not going anywhere with you," he said.

"Natsume wait," Mikan started. "I'm not going to be the one thing standing in the way of you being reunited with your sister." She tried to pour out all her feelings in her eyes. She could only imagine how they looked to him. His eyes were impossibly red, and swimming with so much emotion. This moment must have been so hard for him. His little sister doesn't even recognize him, and the girl he swore to protect is willingly throwing herself at the enemy. "Please," Mikan whispered. "Let me do this."

He hesitated and opened his mouth to speak but Mikan hushed him. "If you care for me, like I care for you. You'll let me do this." She knew her words would hurt, they hurt her just by saying them. His grip on her arm loosened and she reached to hold his hand. She gave it a tight squeeze before she turned to Persona. "You swear you'll let Aoi go? Give her back her memories and leave everyone alone?"

Persona eyed Mikan. "I will agree to those terms."

"Good," Mikan said, taking a step away from Natsume. His grip on her hand didn't loosen and Mikan tried giving him another reassuring squeeze. Hesitantly, he let go and Mikan slowly made her way towards Persona. Persona motioned for Mihara to move over so Mikan could stand next to him. She reluctantly placed herself between the two.

"It's funny," Persona started. "I never would have known of your importance if you had never crossed paths with my black cat. You know, angel abilities are very rare. Such power and strength, it seems unfair that some of us are blessed with such power while others are not."

"Do you have a point?" Natsume growled at Persona.

"Abilities should be feared, not admired," Persona went on. He turned to Mikan. "And you. You have fallen for one of the deadliest ones alive. Fire is such a destructive power. It's a fire that burns through everything and it cannot be put out unless one commands it. It was silly of you to get trapped so easily by his flames."

Mikan gulped at his little spiel. He was right, she had been fully engulfed by Natsume's flame, but she didn't care. She glared at Persona. "I'd do it all over again if it meant meeting him," she said. "Now you have me, so give Aoi back."

Persona's eyebrows raised. "Where's the fun in that?" A smirk played on his lips as Mikan felt her stomach drop.

"Persona!" Natsume shouted conjuring two new flames.

Persona _tsked_ at Natsume. "No, no. We can't have that, now can we? Reo."

Before Natsume could react Reo had taken a step forward. "Freeze," he commanded. "Extinguish your flames, Natsume."

Reo's compulsion wrapped around Natsume and his flames went out. Natsume's eyes narrowed in on Reo and turned almost black. Mikan recalled how Reo hated Natsume and she saw how much satisfaction he was getting from this. Natsume, however was livid and ready to murder him.

"Stop!" Mikan yelled. "You agreed!"

Persona rounded on Mikan, he grabbed her tightly around her arm and yanked her towards him. "I don't make deals with people, they make them with me," he said, tightening his grip on her. Mikan felt the blood in her arm pound and watched as her friends took hesitant steps towards her.

Reo them turned his attention to the others and commanded them as well. "You will not move another step," he commanded.

"Now we can get this show on the road," Persona said. "I'm sure you are all very curious as to why I need this little kitten."

"My ability," Mikan started, "but they're wrong. I don't—I don't have one."

"You are wrong," Persona said. "It is really simple actually why I desire you." He drew one of his fingers and traced her jaw line.

Mikan wanted to throw up at his words. The word _desire_ should not have been used. His grip on her was also bony and she felt disgusted being so close to him. Mikan looked desperately at her friends. They were all struggling and thrusting their bodies in every way but their feet remained firmly on their place.

"You are a sick creep!" Tsubasa called out trying to yank his foot from its place.

"The truth is," he started, "I hold grudges."

"Grudges?" Mikan asked, taken aback.

"Your father took something special away from me, the brightest light and the purest wings."

Mikan wavered. "My—my father?"

"Indeed," Persona said, "and Natsume's father too."

Mikan turned to Natsume to see if he knew what Persona was talking about. Instead Natsume looked just as confused. "What are you talking about?" Natsume spat.

Persona chuckled again. "It's a curious thing, the color of your wings," Persona said his eyes shifting over him. "Black wings are impossible in the angel world." Everyone had grown quiet. This was news to everyone, even Reo and Mihara. They gazed at Natsume curiously. Reo commanded that Natsume show his wings and they popped out.

Persona continued, "The only way to get black wings is to be touched by death. That's right. The very thing many of us fear, death itself, flows through your veins and your wings, alone."

Natsume's eyes narrowed and a hush fell over the field as Persona's words sunk in. Natsume gritted his teeth and for the quickest of moments his eyes flicked to Mikan's. Mikan felt her eyes widen. Persona had said that death only flows through Natsume's wings. She became keenly aware of her heart beating loudly in her ears. Either Persona didn't know about her two-toned wings, or she was some sort of anomaly. She was willing to bet her life that it was the first thought. Persona didn't know. She glanced up and was about to reveal her wings to Persona when she noticed Hotaru staring daggers at her. Hotaru slowly shook her head back and forth, as if she knew what Mikan was about to do. Mikan didn't understand why Hotaru didn't want her to show her wings but she had to trust her, slowly she nodded back to her best friend.

"Death," Natsume said slowly, gaining everyone's attention.

"Your wings came from a deal your father made with me, long ago." Persona paused before he continued, "Angels are selfish. They desire life. You were the first I gifted my curse to for the extended life of your mother. She was dying with you growing inside of her."

Mikan watched as Natsume's eyes grew wide. This was information he didn't know. No one knew it by the looks of it. Ruka looked at Natsume with such remorse.

"Death has been with you since birth," Persona continued. "The deal your father and I made was for him to father no more children in exchange for her life and yours. I took her death and moved it into you." Persona's words struck everyone, and he waited as they all processed what he just said.

Sumire finally broke the silence. "Wait," she said. "What?"

A small smirk played on Persona's lips. He looked back to Natsume. "You were born with black wings, because death already flowed through them. It terrified your parents and then your father broke his deal with me by fathering sweet little Aoi, and so death welcomed his wife once again."

Mikan glanced to Natsume and saw him trying to process all this information. She turned to Persona and shoved him "You killed them?"

"Yes," he said plainly. "I didn't take his father until years later, however."

"You're a monster!" Mikan shouted.

He grabbed her again and pulled her toward him. "You have no idea," he said breathing on her face. She was repulsed by his hot breath. He yanked her again and then threw her down onto the ground. Mikan shocked by the throw blinked back some stars.

"Death," Persona said proudly, "is truly an ability to be feared." He extended one of his palms and his bony fingers bent into disfigured curls. His hand started to smoke and Mikan found herself scooting away from it as it fell off his hand. The smoke rolled off his hand and fell to the ground like a waterfall. It grew darker in color and reeked of rotting flesh. The smoke fell faster from his hand in clumps and started to take shape. Mikan watched horrified as it slowly morphed and pulled itself together in the shape of a shadow. "The manipulation of death," Persona explained. "The greatest ability of them all." His eyes fell to Mikan's. "I alone command death."

Mikan turned sharply to gauge her friend's reactions. Sumire and Koko looked disgusted, Tsbuasa looked terrified, and Hotaru was repulsed by the smell. She turned to Natsume only to find him glaring directly at Persona.

"It is uncanny how you two found each other," Persona said looking between Natsume and Mikan. "After all, death is the one thing that connects us all." He took a step back from Mihara and Reo. "This is my curse," he said. Mihara and Reo stepped back slightly as Persona materialized his wings. Everything about them was repulsive. They were wiry and corroded, like they were rotting. Feathers floated down to the ground and disintegrated into ash. They too smelled like rotting flesh. "Death does not sit well with wings," he explained. "That is why my shadows drag angels into the deepest of pits so that I can take their wings from their back and bestow them upon myself."

Persona's words petrified Mikan to her core. He was truly a despicable and frightening creature. She glanced over at Persona and saw that he was captivated by the shadow creature that was forming in his hand. Slowly, she tried scooting herself away from the enemy. She wasn't sneaky enough because as soon as she scooted Mihara had yanked her up by her arm and held her in a choke grip. She felt the pressure against her next and she tried to refrain from taking gasping breaths.

Mikan struggled against Mihara's grip, and cleared her airway just enough to choke out a sentence. "I don't understand," she said. "Why are you doing this?"

Persona turned to her and kept a firm grip on the shadow in his hand. "Like I said, I hold grudges." He let go of his grip on the shadow and let it fall to the ground. Mikan watched as it scurried away from him and towards her friends. It latched onto Tsubasa first who cried out in surprise. He was immediately brought down by the weight on the shadow, and Mikan could only imagine how terrified he was in that moment, his first encounter with a shadow.

"Remember," Persona began, "I said your father also took something from me." He let go of another shadow that he had created and it scurried towards Natsume. It jumped onto his back and Natsume struggled under the gravity pulling him down. He scratched at the shadow hoping to knock it off, but instead it wrapped itself around his arms and torso like it was binding him.

"Your father had a glorious ability," Persona said. "He had the ability to repel my shadows, my corrosion, and the death that I could control. A single feather from his wings would do the trick and they would not degrade. He took care of me and watched over me, like a father while my own parents abandoned me because I was a monster in their eyes. Your father would control my ability. He said he would never leave my side." Persona's tone of voice changed sharply, it was more bitter and full of hatred. "That was a lie," he spat. "He fell in love with your mother and his focus had shifted. He didn't visit as often, and my condition worsened. I had to result to other methods of controlling my curse with the help of Mihara. He so willingly sewed new wings onto my back each time they became too corroded."

Mikan glanced to a smug looking Mihara. He had pulled the rust covered blade she recognized from the chamber in the tunnels from somewhere and stroked its edge as if he was testing its sharpness. How could anyone find pleasure in mutating wings from a body like Mihara obviously did? His eyes were hungry and it looked like he ached to cut someone's wings off.

Persona carelessly plucked a disfigured feather from his wings and let it drift to the ground where it withered away. "Your father found out about my other methods and was severely displeased. He plucked one last feather from his wings and gave it to me that day. He parted ways and mentioned his wife was pregnant and that he could no longer be there for me."

Mikan listened to Persona's tale with fascination. She had no idea her father had such an ability or that he had such a connection to Persona. Persona slowly raised his other hand and two more shadows began to form. They too fell off his hands and made their way to new victims: Hotaru and Ruka this time.

Persona turned to Mikan and lifted her chin. "The moment after your father told me of you, my curse overpowered me and destroyed him. Death took him and I was all alone."

Mikan felt tears form in her eyes partly because Mihara was still choking her and also because she never actually knew how her father had died.

"Your stupid mother," Persona spat. "She feared for your safety and she used her own ability to seal your wings away and your birth went down in history as the first angel without wings. My rage took her later that night when I found out she had given you away to someone else to raise."

Persona gripped her chin tightly and dug his nails into her skin. "You evaded me for quite some time but then you willingly walked into my grasp, but you were still broken. You needed to be fixed. I had to find some way to break your mother's seal. I had to see if you shared the same ability as your father. I had Yoichi attacked. I attacked your friends. I attacked everyone. Then one of my shadows broke the seal within you and I got to see for myself that you had them. Your father's wings. They repelled and weakened my shadows." Persona's eyes lit up with power. "I was so relieved. My salvation had returned, I just had to harness it."

"So what?" Sumire screamed. "Are you going to keep her as your pet?"

Persona turned sharply and let out a startling laugh. "Of course not! I am going to take her wings for myself. The power that runs through them will combat my corrosion and make me invincible."

Mikan felt Persona shift his eyes hungrily to her and she started panicking. Persona grabbed her from Mihara's grasp and she felt the pressure ease on her throat. She gasped for fresh air and tried to fill her lungs but breathing so deeply hurt.

Persona spun her around so she could get a good glimpse of Mihara's blade. Mikan watched as Mihara curled his fingers around the handle and stroked the blade.

"Thank you my kitten, I will be forever grateful for your incredible contribution to my life," Persona said. "Now will you play along nicely or will we have to do this the hard way?"

Mikan took another look at the blade and then glanced to her friends. They struggled against the shadows and seemed to be pinned down by fear. She desperately needed to find a way to distract Reo and knock him out so his trance on her friends could be broken. Anything. Maybe she could punch him.

She shifted her gaze to Natsume and watched as he caught her gaze. She stared back at him and saw that his eyes were practically screaming at her. She narrowed her gaze as if to question him and he slowly moved his right hand into his jacket. He was trying to tell her something. Only she had no idea what. He tugged at his jacket urging her to understand, but she didn't understand. His jacket was black like usual and she didn't see how it could help her. Out of ideas, she snuck her own hand into her own jacket trying to understand and her fingers fumbled around until they curled around a single black feather.

She gripped it tightly. Was he trying to tell her he cared for her still? That he was with her? She glanced at his black wings that were pinned down by shadows and felt sad. The mystery of their color had been revealed and it was terrible. Death. Something so final, broken and unfixable defined them. He was alone. Persona had cursed him and only him. It was the only way to get black wings, to be touched by _his_ death.

Mikan squeezed the black feather she held one last time, it felt warm under her touch. Abruptly, she let go of it like it had shocked her. Her hand shook as she removed it from her jacket. She let it fall lifelessly to her side and she hung her head.

"Finally admitting your defeat?" Mihara asked hotly.

Mikan released a breath she had been holding and her body shook, not with fear, but with silent laughs.

Mihara took it as quiet sobs but Reo eyed her warily. "She's laughing," he said disbelievingly. "She must be crazy."

She kept her eyes trained on the ground. "That dead rose," she said without a trace of uncertainty. "The one you left on my dad's grave. It wasn't to lure me out. It was because you felt remorse for what you had done."

Persona yanked her around so that he could look at her. "I feel no such thing for a dead man," he said through gritted teeth.

Mikan snapped her eyes to his. "Tell me," she said. "Did you mean for it to be tainted by your _curse?_ "

Persona looked at her with cold eyes and Mikan knew she had struck a nerve. It must not have been intentional or he didn't know that his ability took form in the flowers he touched.

Mikan shook her head at Persona and looked to Natsume. She looked right at him when she spoke. "Natsume's not the only one who's been touched by death," she said.

Persona's grip on her loosened and his eyes grew wide. Mikan took that chance to take a step away from him. "You were right," she said taking another step away from him and towards Reo. "I had my father's ability, but not anymore," and with that final thought she materialized her wings.

Mikan watched as Persona's face fell from a scowl into one of pure distraught. His eyes fixated on her one black wing and she could see his hard exterior shell crack. "No!" he growled. His bony fingers clenched into fists, his arms shook and his eyes darkened into black pits. He jerked violently for Mikan and she ducked quickly out of the way. She watched as Persona lost control of his emotions. Wisps of smoke fell rapidly from his fists in uncontrollable waves. Shadows morphed and twisted into shapes at an alarming rate. They slithered along swiftly across the ground in a frenzy. The smoke from his hands rose quickly and grew in size. Shadows attacked blindly in masses. They went after everyone. Aoi screamed in terror as one latched onto her tiny wrist. Mihara swung blindly at a group that lunged for him.

When one went for Reo, Mikan took her chance and lunged for Reo as well. They fell into a mess on the ground. Shadows quickly engulfed them and tethered them to the ground. They struggled under their weight. Reo struggled against the weight of the shadows and against Mikan's punches. She figured if she kept hitting him he would grow distracted enough to lose his hold on her friends. She ran her hands across his face and tried scratching him. He tried to shake her off but the shadows made it difficult. She shoved her hands in his mouth when he tried opening his mouth to compel her and she felt slightly victorious.

He banged his head against the ground trying to avoid a shadow aiming for it and Mikan heard a loud thud from the impact. She winced and imagined it had to have hurt. When two new shadows crept on to her she started panicking. Before she could repel them with her one feather but now she had nothing. She felt them drag her down and chill her to her core.

She was in the process of trying to shake one off when it suddenly caught fire. The shadow screeched and disintegrated into a revolting stench. She jumped back from the fire and watched with wide eyes as Natsume had removed himself and conjured a large fire. All her friends were carefully stepping away from the flames and recovering from their previous incapacitations.

The shadows went crazy and scurried away from the fire. They seemed to run towards Persona for security. They crept up on him and consumed him, in twisting ribbons, and they wound their way across his limbs. His face was the only part of his body still uncovered by shadows and Mikan watched as the shadows slowly crept up his face like long fingers scratching into flesh. Persona trashed under their pressure and his eyes bulged as they eventually covered his whole body.

A scream erupted from Aoi who was trying desperately to cling to Reo. She yelled out for him but Reo ignored her and stumbled out of reach of the remaining few shadows. Aoi's little hands grasped at his clothes and he shook her away.

"Get off of me, you brat!" he yelled at her.

Aoi's eyes grew wide at Reo's words. "But, brother…" she trailed off.

Reo rounded on her and yanked her tiny hands from his jacket. "I'm not your brother you stupid girl!" He shoved her hard and she fell back onto the ground, tears welling in her eyes. Reo stared down at her before quickly glancing to Natsume.

Natsume had two new flames and aimed them directly at Reo's head. "You're dead, Reo," he spat.

Reo's eyes trailed to the flames in his hands and he quickly turned back to Aoi. He knelt down dodging a flame Natsume threw at him and grasped Aoi tightly by her shoulders. "I'm not your brother, forget this ever happened. Remember Natsume," he gave his compulsion quickly before he turned around to look at Natsume. "It's been fun," Reo said, popping out his wings, "but I think it's time to go." With a final disgusted look at Persona Reo leapt into the air and disappeared. Mihara quickly followed suit and took off as well.

Aoi looked up from her spot on the ground and stared off, blinking Reo's compulsion from her mind. She looked around and stared horrified at the monster that Persona had turned into. She screamed and hastily backed away. Natsume quickly closed the gap between them and scooped her up into his arms. Aoi's frantic clawing eased as she finally recognized Natsume and her screams turned into sobs as she reached around her brother to hug him.

Persona, now fully engulfed and emanating a rotting and nose burning stench turned to look at Mikan. His movements were jerky and forced. The shadows consuming him were making movement difficult. Her let out a garbled up noise that everyone could only guess at. His mass of shadows angled itself towards Mikan. His form constantly twisted and pulsed like the shadows were trying to squeeze the life out of him. He let out a blood curdling scream and lunged for Mikan.

Ruka quickly jumped in between them and tackled her to the side and a shadow reached out and grasped his ankle. Mikan, momentarily dazed, reached out for Ruka and pulled as hard as she could on his wrist. Koko and Sumire joined her and they all pulled at Ruka trying to free him.

Persona's garbled screaming continued as he stopped trying to pull Ruka and just lunged at the four of them instead. The smell swept over them, stinging their eyes and making them nauseous.

Natsume removed Aoi from his embrace and left her with Tsubasa and Hotaru. Tsubasa held her tightly in his arms and Natsume turned his attention back to Persona and his friends. He rushed over to the mess of a pile his friends had made on the ground. He placed his hand on the mass of shadows that was gripping Ruka and simply burned it. The shadow beneath his hand began to disintegrate and it burned away. Koko then was able to yank Ruka away and the two fell back onto the ground.

Natsume yanked up Sumire and Mikan by their arms and pushed them behind him. Sumire stumbled a little and Mikan steadied herself by grabbing onto Natsume's jacket. He had two flames conjured and ready to strike, but instead he stood in front of the shadowy mass and waited. It was as if he was trying to reach Persona. Eventually the mass calmed its erratic movements, and its shifting and pulsing lessened.

"Death might connect us all," Natsume started. "But I do not fear death, and I will not let it consume me." Natsume twisted the flame in his right hand and watched it grow. "You are consumed by your own _ability_ because you fear it."

Persona's mess of a body grew enraged. It grew in size and hysteria. The shadows twisted and morphed all over his body in impossibly fast movements. They were feeding off of his rage. They were truly consuming him, like Natsume had said, and overpowering him. With a deranged scream Persona leapt towards Natsume.

Natsume moved the two girls away before he enlarged his flames and hurled them towards Persona. They caught and everyone watched as the flames grew in size and intensity. They spread across the mass and pieces of shadow began to melt off of his form. Persona's wings popped out and were soon engulfed in fire. They spread and the form in front of them almost looked like a fiery demon. The decaying wings were highlighted by fire and were truly a sight to be feared.

The shadows grew even more frantic and clung to Persona for life. Persona's frame slowly shrunk as the flames and shadows both tried to consume him. Mikan watched in horror as the remaining shadows scratched away at his flesh and swallowed him up before they too were engulfed by flames. Smoke rose into the air and the wind carried the scent of death.

Mikan watched the flaming figure with wide eyes. She wasn't really sure what was happening. Did Natsume just kill Persona or was it inevitable as the shadows were doing it themselves? She blinked as the heat subsided and the flames disappeared.

All that was left of the shadowy horde was a pile of ash on the ground. The wind swept it up easily, like a fallen feather, and carried it along the wind. No one spoke for a while as they all watched and tried to process what had just happened.

Persona was gone. That meant the shadows were gone and no one else would be sacrificed for his whims. It had been traumatizing and tiresome. Mikan wasn't sure if they had acted justly or not, but it was over. Persona was gone. She was safe, her friends were safe with only minor injuries. Aoi was safe. Mikan turned quickly to look for Aoi. She found her in Tsubasa's arms and let a smile fall across her face. They did it. Aoi could go home.

Mikan turned back around and found Natsume standing dangerously close to her. She lost her breath as his closeness and softened her smile. He reached out for her and drew her in for an embrace. One arm cradled her back while the other pulled her head towards his chest. She felt herself fall as Natsume fell to the ground and embraced her there.

"Natsume," she whispered.

He squeezed her tightly before he whispered back, "Thank you."


	24. Finally Free

**Chapter Twenty-Four: Finally Free**

"Miiiiiiiiikan!"

A childlike scream woke Mikan from her sleep. Startled, she shot upright in her bed and her head collided with something hard. She doubled over clutching her head, rubbing at the spot that hit something, or someone.

"Ugh, Natsume," a whine said. "This wasn't fun at all."

Mikan peeked out from her hands to see Aoi sprawled out on her bed rubbing her own forehead. The little girl must have wanted to scare her, and of course her brother had set her up to it. Mikan shifted her eyes across her room to see Natsume leaning against her dresser, a smirk played on his lips.

Mikan glared at him. "What're you smirking for?"

"You were drooling in your sleep," Natsume said shrugging.

Mikan patted her face for signs of drool but found none, she looked to her pillow and found none again. He was lying. She whipped her head back at him to retort but he beat her to it.

"Dreaming of me?" he asked walking towards her.

Mikan blushed slightly before she hastily reached for her pillow. She whipped it out from behind her, swinging it over Aoi's still sprawled body, and flung it at Natsume. He deflected it easily and Mikan watched as it fell to the floor, expecting it to magically cripple him.

He stepped over the pillow and walked slowly over to her bed. His gaze never left hers as he spoke. "Aoi, go find Yoichi and Ruka. Get started on your studies."

Aoi jumped off from the bed and ran out the door, waving at them. "Bye, Mikan!" she yelled, her short black hair trailing behind her.

Natsume sat down on the edge of her bed and placed his hand on the other side of her, effectively trapping her in her place. Mikan searched his eyes trying to guess his end game. She was not very good at it. He always had some sort of trick up his sleeve and she still couldn't believe that he had actually stuck around after everything that had happened a couple months ago.

Things had long since calmed down since the Persona fiasco. It had been about two months since the incident and Persona's ultimate demise. No one really knew how to proceed after Reo and Mihara bailed out. They kind of just stood around dumbfounded.

"Is it over?" Koko had asked.

"Did you kill Persona?" Sumire asked Natsume.

Natsume stared down at his hands. "I—"

"I think," Hotaru interjected, "his shadows devoured him first."

It was such an overwhelming moment. Persona's own shadows and ability over powered him and took him down, ultimately. All his goons had fled and remained in the dark as well, no one seemed to want to be associated with him. News of Persona spread rapidly and angels everywhere rejoiced at his disappearance and the knowledge that the shadow attacks were over.

Not a single shadow attack has occurred since that day. Sumire argues that their lives were tethered to Persona's, which would then actually make them dumb as they inadvertently killed themselves by killing their master. Hotaru hypothesized another scenario. She said they were under his control but he lost that control and the shadows retreated back to their natural creaks and corners. Their lust for wings was no longer present and they could simply go back to being lifeless shadows. Regardless of who was right, the shadows were gone and they weren't coming back.

Some brave soldier had ventured back into the tunnels with Sumire's guidance and discovered a small notebook. The hand writing was terribly illegible and was identified to be Mihara's. He had recorded the names of all of Persona's victims and how long their wings had lasted him. It was a numbing list to read, and more names than they all expected were present.

Then there was Aoi. She had been separated from normal society for so long that her adjustment was going poorly. She clung to those familiar to her, and Yoichi didn't take kindly to her taking his time with Natsume away from him. They were fighting for his affection and Natsume seemed to be in over his head, and sought out advice from his friends. So in the meantime, Aoi is being reintroduced to society slowly back at the temple. Which Mikan didn't mind as it was an excuse to see Natsume more often.

Mikan blinked back the memories and stared into Natsume's eyes. "Um," she said, dizzy off his scent.

"Go get dressed," he said.

"Oh," Mikan said. She shifted, expecting him move so she could put some clothes on but he didn't. He remained still with his eyes trained on her. The morning air was cool on her warm skin as she wiggled her way out from underneath his arm. She rolled off the bed and glanced to her balcony. The sun was barely up. She groaned. Natsume better have a good reason for this.

Once in her bathroom, she splashed some cold water on her face to wake herself up. She tied her hair back and slipped into the clothes she had grabbed. The mirror in front of her showed the reflection of a girl with sleep still etched onto her face. Mikan groaned and ran her hands down her face, hoping it would magically make her look presentable. She patted her cheeks to get some color into them and decided it was good enough.

The bathroom door squeaked open and Mikan paused when she found her balcony wide open. The wind was bitter and blew the curtains around frantically. She huffed in annoyance, noticing that Natsume was no longer on her bed.

"That jerk," she mumbled, turning around. "What was the point of all that?"

A yawn caught in her chest and she found herself unable to fight it. She closed her eyes and tried to hold the yawn as long as she could.

A soft rustling noise caught her attention and she spun back around to look at her balcony. Her eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. Natsume had reappeared inches in front of her. She stumbled back at his closeness. "Ahhh!" she exclaimed tripping over her feet.

He reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her towards him. His hair looked wind-swept, his black wings glistened with what must have been tiny snowflakes, and he looked absolutely breathtaking.

Mikan's eyes traveled all around his perfect figure. Everything about it seemed familiar and comforting, not at all terrifying like before. Instinctively she reached out for one of his wings and let her fingers trail across his feathers. They were cool to the touch. The flakes melted under her touch and she liked how they felt on her fingertips. A smile crept over her face. She couldn't believe this was real, this incredible angel, who had been to hell and back.

The wings suddenly disappeared from underneath her touch and her hand hung in the air. She glanced up at Natsume and found him smirking. The smile fell from her face and she grew annoyed again.

"What," she started, "Wait. What was that for?" She shoved him in the chest to make a point.

He caught the hand that shoved him easily and held it. "You have no idea what your touch does to me," he said.

Mikan blinked once at his response. She had meant for her question to be about him leaving so his response startled her. "No," she started, "I meant—"

He held up a small brown bag in front of her face before she could finish. "I brought breakfast," he said.

Mikan's mouth hung open as she decided that admitting defeat was the easiest action. Plus she was hungry.

Natsume, taking advantage of Mikan's confused state quickly maneuvered the bag open and pulled out a small pastry. He swiftly popped it into Mikan's open mouth.

Surprised by the action, Mikan took a few moments before she started to chew. The pastry was sweet and warm. It melted in her mouth and tasted like strawberries. She savored every moment of it, she had no idea Natsume had such good taste, literally. She closed her eyes to fully immerse herself in its flavor.

"What were you thinking about?" Natsume asked.

"Hmm?" Mikan mumbled, still obsessing over the pastry.

"When you were gawking at my wing," Natsume pressed on.

Mikan popped her eyes open. The deliciousness of the pastry had faded with his clarification. She was hoping he wouldn't ask. "Nothing," she said shrugging.

His eyes narrowed. He wasn't buying it. "Hn," he said, trailing his thumb over the bottom of her lip. "Are you sure?" he asked, moving her hand so that it wrapped around his waist.

Mikan's brain began to cloud and her pulse quickened. His damn thumb was way too distracting. "Um."

His other hand snaked around her waist and pulled her closer to him. He pulled up her chin and smoldered her with his gaze. Mikan was so close to breaking.

A quick knock on the door and it flying open seconds later interrupted them. Mikan tried backing away from Natsume and their closeness but he didn't let her budge. So instead, Mikan craned her neck to see a startled Misaki in the doorway.

"Yeah," she drawled. "I'm never going to get used to this."

Natsume released his grip on Mikan and removed himself from her grasp. He walked over to her dresser and leaned against it.

"Misaki!" Mikan shouted.

Misaki shifted her gaze between the two of them. "You know the balcony is open right? It's freezing in here."

"What?" Mikan turned around sharply to look at her balcony. It was still in fact open. "I didn't even notice."

Misaki glanced back and forth between the two angels. "Riiiiiiiight," she drawled.

Mikan quickly shuffled around to the balcony and latched the doors shut. The cool air engulfed her before she turned around to face Misaki. "So," she started, "What's up?"

Misaki grinned sneakily before she took a step back out the door. "You have kitchen duty!" She spun around and called out over her shoulder, "Okay bye!"

Before Mikan could react Misaki was gone and Mikan stood with a confused look on her face. She looked to Natsume and found him frowning at her.

"I don't have kitchen duty!"

He raised his eyebrows at her, making her frustration grow even more.

"I swear," Mikan huffed. "Come on," she said dragging him out of her room.

Natsume let her drag him down to the kitchen. He didn't say a word or resist at all until they reached the kitchen doors.

Mikan was about to shove through them when he pulled her back. She blinked at the sudden force he used. She questioned him with her eyes.

"I had something else in mind for today," he said.

Mikan looked around the hallway as if it would explain his statement. "What?"

"I finally have Aoi and Yoichi off my back, and my whole day is free. There's no way I'm spending it in a damn kitchen."

"Uh," Mikan said hesitantly. "I can try to get out of it."

Natsume moved to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Good," he whispered huskily.

Mikan distracted by his movements didn't see the swinging doors open behind her. They smacked into her side, making her groan.

"Oh good!" Anna called out. "Can you start the fire? I can't get it."

Mikan turned to Natsume and shrugged at him. "Just this, I promise."

"Tch," Natsume replied.

Mikan walked into the kitchen and was met with a disaster of products thrown about the kitchen. Eggs, half peeled fruits, shopped onions, and loaves of bread littered the counter.

"Uh… Anna?" Mikan asked.

"Just start the stupid fire Mikan!" Anna yelled.

Mikan jumped out of her skin and hurried over to the brick oven. She fumbled with the kindling and reached for a match. Natsume hovered over her, making her nervous. She tried lighting the first math only to have it break on her. The second lit but the kindling wouldn't catch. Every passing second Natsume hovered closer. The fifth match broke again and Natsume bent down next to her.

Mikan glanced over to him and tried smiling off the annoyance. He glared at her before he sparked a flame easily in his hand. Mikan squeaked at the sudden heat and then paled. She stumbled backwards and reached for the bucket of water they kept by the oven. She hastily grabbed it and then threw its contents at Natsume.

The water from the bucket moved in slow motion as it cascaded over Natsume and soaked him. The flame remained intact, since water couldn't douse his ability so easily. Instead he extinguished the flame himself. He narrowed his eyes and glared at Mikan.

Mikan backed into the corner realizing her mistake. "Wait! Wait!" she said. She swore she could see steam coming from his body. He was furious.

Mikan babbled. "I—I only wanted to—because your fire—it weakens you." She scooted back some more as the intensity in the room grew. "You shouldn't use it…"

Anna briskly walked over to them and slid on the puddle of water. She slid and collided with the counter. "Ahhh!"

Mikan and Natsume watched as the breath was knocked out of her. "Argh!" she screamed. "Just get out! Out! Out! OUT!"

Mikan stumbled over her feet as she shot up and bee-lined for the door. She didn't look back or wait for Natsume. She assumed he'd follow in his own fury. She ran as fast as she could out of the temple's doors and into the courtyard.

She ran out of breath and her legs shook with exhaustion when she reached the fountain. She stopped to catch her breath. She bent down and rested her hand on her knees, and took in as much air as she could.

A fluttering noise and a whoosh of air caught her attention. Her head snapped up and she stared up at the fountain's head. Natsume stood gracefully on top of it. Perfectly balanced, like the first time they had ever met.

Mikan laughed. "Well, isn't this familiar she said?"

He stood as still as a statue, until he craned his head in her direction. "Why did you run here?"

Mikan looked at him before frowning. Flying would have been so much easier. Why didn't she think of that? She tried laughing in a menacing way at him but failed.

"Just saving my flying strength," she said casually.

"For what?" he asked.

"You know," Mikan said, popping out her wings.

He raised his eyebrows, and his eyes trailed over her two wings. They lingered on the black one longer, like they usually did.

She readied herself for a quick take off. "For our race," she said sheepishly.

"Race?" he questioned.

She flashed him a smile before she shot off the ground and into the air. She had been practicing since things had calmed down and she was pretty confident in her abilities. She cut through the wind with a speed she didn't know she had. It whipped her hair behind her and she couldn't help but smile at her own speed. She turned back to see where Natsume was and found an empty fountain instead.

Frowning, she turned back around only to almost collide with him. He hovered just in front of her. She abruptly had to veer out of the way to avoid crashing into him. He effortlessly beat his wings and flew in sync with her.

She noticed his eyes were lit with a fire she was all too familiar with. A fire that burned for excitement and thrill.

"Where to?" he asked.

Mikan smiled brightly at him. He looked so alive and so determined. She thought for a moment before her eyes found their destination. "The bridge," she said.

Natsume's eyes widened and a smirk fell across his face. Mikan marveled in the moment before she tucked in her wings and dove for the ground. For the first time in a long time, she truly felt weightless, and free. The bridge was in sight, and she didn't feel like losing.

 **The End.**

* * *

Hi there.

So that's the end of my very first fic! I hope you enjoyed it and I'm glad you stuck with me until the end.

Thanks for all the support and the wonderful reviews. I hope I wrote something you could enjoy. Until next time.

SpaceOranges.


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